The Yankees never wanted to trade pitcher Michael King. They loved the right-hander when he was a multi-innings, high-leverage reliever at the start of his career and they loved him after he went into their rotation in August 2023.
Reluctantly, they had to do it.
That’s the only way the Padres would sign off on trading star outfielder Juan Soto during the 2023 Winter Meetings. King was the centerpiece of the Padres’ return in a blockbuster deal on Dec. 7, 2023 that sent Soto and center fielder Trent Grisham to New York for King, young pitchers Randy Vasquez, Jhony Brito and Drew Thorpe, and veteran catcher Kyle Higashioka.
Two years later, King is a free agent and the Yankees would like to get him back even though their loaded with starting pitching.
According to the Boston Globe, King is considering signing with the Yankees and two of their AL East rivals, the Red Sox and Orioles. A Rhode Island native and Boston College alum, King has “strong interest” in signing with the Red Sox, MassLive reported.
If the Yankees sign King, he could be in a season-opening rotation that includes All-Star left-hander Max Fried, 2024 AL Rookie of the Year Luis Gil and a pair of right-handers who impressed as rookies last season, Will Warren and Cam Schlitter.
But with All-Star left-hander Carlos Rodon expected to return from his offseason surgery by late April and former Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole due back from Tommy John surgery in May or June, the Yankees could follow a King signing by dealing one of their starters, perhaps Gil. Also, Clarke Schmidt is expected back late in the season from his Tommy John surgery,
King, 30, was 5-3 with a 3.44 ERA in 15 starts in an injury-plagued 2025 season with the Padres. He was on the IL from May 25 to Aug. 9 and from Aug. 14 to Sept. 9 with shoulder inflammation.
For his career, he’s 31-29 with a 3.24 ERA in 16 games, 64 as a starter.
His best season was 2024 when he was 13-9 with a 2.95 ERA in 31 games, 30 starts, for the Padres.
King began his career with the Yankees mostly pitching as a multi-inning, high-leverage reliever. From 2019 through 2023, he had a 13-17 record for the Yankees with a 3.38 ERA in 115 games, 19 as a starter.
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