Michael King opts out of San Diego Padres contract, becomes a free agent

The World Series is over. Now the rest of the baseball world can go about its business, and the San Diego Padres already have some very important matters to attend to.

In a move that was widely expected, Michael King … the Padres ace and most reliable starting pitcher … opted out of the remaining two years and $58 million on his contract to become a free agent. King is entering his age-32 season, right in the middle of his prime, and would have commanded a nine-figure deal even before he showed the baseball world that he’s one of the few guys in the game who can shut down the Milwaukee Brewers.

King started the postseason taking a no-hitter into the 7th inning of the NL Wild Card Series against the Cubs, then was in line to get the win Game 2 of the National League Division Series with 5.0 innings of one-run ball in Wisconsin before coming out of the bullpen on one day of rest to throw two innings and get the save in Game 3 at Petco Park. All in all, King tossed 14.0 postseason innings, allowing five hits, one run, and striking out 15 against the two highest-scoring offenses in Major League Baseball.

Brewers manager Pat Murphy, always outspoken and honest, called King one of the most underrated pitchers in the game. In a nutshell, regular season Michael King is very, very good starting pitcher. Playoffs Michael King is Greg Maddux at his peak.

In the regular season he was a steadying presence for a Padres rotation that was beset by injuries and ineffectiveness. King made 32 starts and tossed 185.0 innings (both career highs) with a 3.21 ERA. Add that to his playoff prowess and King likely jumps up to be the number two free agent starter available after two-time Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal.

The question immediately becomes, will the Padres be able to bring him back? They have an exclusive five day window to negotiate a new deal with King before he hits the open market, giving new owners Jose E. Feliciano and Kwana Jones a chance to further endear themselves to the Friar Faithful by keeping a fan favorite in town.

If he leaves, it puts the Padres pitching staff into an almost dire situation. Randy Vasquez, Joe Musgrove, and Yu Darvish are the only starters under contract for 2027, and there’s no guarantee the Musgrove can still be a starter or that Darvish will attempt to return from another elbow surgery to pitch again. They have the option to bring back Nick Pivetta at $14 million but Walker Buehler, Casey Mize, and Robbie Ray are also free agents.

It feels like, if King is kept on the roster, then the rest of the pieces will eventually fall into place. Without him? Let’s not think about that unless we have to.

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