King rejected the Padres' $22.025 million qualifying offer Tuesday, Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com reports.
King was limited to 15 regular-season starts in 2025 due to shoulder and knee issues, but it's still not a surprise he elected to turn down the qualifying offer. King posted a 3.44 ERA over 73.1 innings last year and had a 2.95 ERA during his first season as a full-time starter in 2024. Extending the qualifying offer will net the Padres a compensatory draft pick, assuming he doesn't re-sign with the team.
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Michael King: Receives qualifying offer
Rotowire
The Padres extended a one-year, $22.05 million qualifying offer to King on Thursday, Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com reports.
King will presumably decline the offer and instead pursue a multi-year deal in free agency, and if he signs somewhere other than San Diego, the Padres will receive a compensatory draft pick. The 30-year-old righty is likely to have plenty of suitors this offseason after turning in a 3.44 ERA and 1.20 WHIP over 73.1 innings in 2025.
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Michael King: Bound for free agency
Rotowire
King declined his side of a $15 million mutual option for the 2026 season Sunday, making him an unrestricted free agent, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Though he endured an injury-plagued 2025 campaign in which he compiled a 3.44 ERA over 73.1 innings and 15 starts before being moved to the bullpen for the Padres' postseason run, King will head to the open market for the first time in search of a multi-year contract. Despite a somewhat concerning health record, King shouldn't have too much trouble securing a big payday in free agency after submitting stellar ratios (3.10 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 18.2 K-BB%) over the past two seasons with San Diego while making the full-time transition to the rotation.
Padres' Michael King: Left out of wild-card rotation
Rotowire
Padres manager Mike Shildt said Monday that King will be available out of the bullpen for the National League Wild Card Series against the Cubs, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.
Nick Pivetta and Dylan Cease will start Games 1 and 2, respectively, and Yu Darvish is in line to take the ball in a potential Game 3. King was limited to only five starts from late May on due to shoulder and knee problems, and he posted a 6.11 ERA and 12:9 K:BB over 17.2 innings in those outings. The righty could be added back to the rotation if the Padres advance to the NLDS, but he'll be assigned to the bullpen for the wild-card round.
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Padres' Michael King: Abbreviated outing in no-decision
Rotowire
King did not factor into the decision in Saturday's 5-1 win over the Diamondbacks, allowing one hit and two walks with three strikeouts over 2.2 scoreless innings.
King generated seven whiffs on 49 pitches in his final regular-season outing as the Padres gear up to face the Cubs in the wild-card round. The 30-year-old posted a 5.74 ERA over four starts since returning from the injured list Sept. 9, though much of that damage came in an eight-run blowup against the Mets three turns ago. He'll wrap up an injury-plagued season with a 3.44 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 76:26 K:BB over 73.1 innings, while his role for the postseason remains unsettled.
King (5-3) allowed four hits and four walks over five-plus scoreless innings Sunday, striking out four and earning a win over the White Sox.
King worked out of multiple jams through five frames to keep the White Sox off the board. He loaded the bases with no outs in the sixth but was not charged with any runs after Adrian Morejon came in to clean up the mess. King still doesn't look like his usual self, but it was a much better performance than his last outing when he was tagged with eight runs against the Mets. The 30-year-old righty is now sporting a 3.57 ERA with a 73:24 K:BB through 70.2 innings this season. King's final regular-season start is projected to be at home next weekend against the Diamondbacks.
King (4-3) yielded eight runs on 10 hits over three-plus innings Tuesday, striking out two and taking a loss against the Mets.
King was cursed by the long ball, as he gave up four home runs in the short outing, including Brett Baty's two-run blast to cap off the Mets' five-run first inning. King gave up six total homers in his first 11 starts this season, but has now been taken deep six times in two appearances since returning from the injured list in early September. He has not finished six innings in a start since May 6, and his season ERA climbed to 3.84 with a 69:20 K:BB over 65.2 innings. King is currently lined up for a road start against the White Sox this weekend.
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