Padres receive $57 million Michael King contract projection from ESPN insider

Jared Bloom

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Padres receive $57 million Michael King contract projection from ESPN insider image

The San Diego Padres recently lost one of their aces, Dylan Cease, in free agency. He and the Toronto Blue Jays agreed to a seven-year, $210 million contract.

Now, the club is at risk of losing another one of its frontline starters, Michael King. He is currently on the open market and should generate solid interest. 

He is coming off a season where he played 15 games, putting together a 5-3 record with a 3.44 ERA across 73.1 innings of work. A shoulder issue and left knee inflammation caused him to miss some time. 

Padres receive $57 million Michael King contract projection from ESPN insider

While retaining one of its frontline starters is out of the question, the Padres may turn their attention to keeping King around. ESPN's Kiley McDaniel projects the former New York Yankees pitcher to receive a three-year, $57 million contract, which San Diego could work with. 

McDaniel explains that King's market could have been a lot better if it were not for injury issues and inconsistencies, but he is believed to bounce back. 

"His 2025 season was somewhat lost though, as shoulder and knee issues cost him half the season, his strikeout rate dipped from 28% to 25% and he gave up more damage on contact. You could read that platform season as a setup for a make-good one-year deal with incentives, but there are enough unique qualities to King that I think he'll land a multi-year deal."

The Padres are not the only team to watch here, though. There are several teams looking to bolster their starting rotations who could outbid San Diego, such as the Yankees, New York Mets, or San Francisco Giants. 

He will be a player that fans will want to pay attention to when MLB's Winter Meeting begins on Monday.

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Editorial Team