The New Yorker
San Diego, CA – The 2026 Padres’ starting rotation is beginning to take shape. The question was which of Dylan Cease or Michael King would be coming back. On Thursday night, the answer came.
Right-hander Michael King and the San Diego Padres are in agreement on a three-year, $75 million contract, sources tell ESPN. The deal allows King to opt out after the 2026 and 2027 seasons. @Feinsand was first on the news.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 19, 2025
Michael King and the San Diego Padres came to an agreement on a three-year deal worth $75 million.
The contract is rather complex, as King will have a pair of opt-outs after the 2026 and 2027 seasons.
It is essentially a one-year, $17 million deal with the two player options valued at $28 million for 2027 and $30 million for 2028. King will receive a $12 million signing bonus, and his 2026 cash salary is set at $5 million. As of the time of publication, King has passed his physical, and the deal is done, reports Mark Feinsand. The contract’s structure parallels the Nick Pivetta contract from last offseason in its backloaded nature and low cash value in the first season.
Michael King has already completed his physical with the Padres and the deal is done, per source.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) December 19, 2025
King, 30, signs the deal coming off an injury-marred season in 2025.
After a breakout 2024, King started the 2025 season hot, earning the Opening Day nod and pitching to a 2.09 ERA over the first month of the season. King made his first ten starts of the season on schedule and looked to be building upon 2024. After his start on May 18, King had a 2.59 ERA and 1.02 WHIP, and was on a path to the All-Star Game. However, King reportedly slept wrong on his shoulder, which ended up costing him two-plus months. It came to light that King was battling an issue with his thoracic nerve, which put him on the shelf until August.
King returned for one abbreviated start against the Red Sox, but then missed a month due to knee inflammation as a result of “ramping up too quickly”. King ended the season not pitching over five innings in any of his final four starts, and ultimately threw only one inning in the Padres’ elimination loss to the Cubs in Game 3 of the Wild Card Series.
While the financial situation surrounding the Padres’ budget for acquisition has been overblown by voices outside the organization, the team has maintained a stance of investing in the team, and bringing back King on a sort of “build your value” deal adds a much-needed arm to a thin rotation. There is some risk with this contract as well, should King’s injuries become recurring ones. However, for a Padres team that was within striking distance of a division title, having King to complement a rotation featuring Nick Pivetta, a returning Joe Musgrove, and Randy Vasquez is certainly a welcome acquisition.
When the signing goes through, the Padres’ luxury tax payroll will sit around $253 million, while their cash payroll will be roughly $204.5 million.
The Padres organization has not yet confirmed the signing.
A born and raised San Diegan, Diego Garcia is a lifetime Padres fan and self-proclaimed baseball nerd. Diego wrote about baseball on his own site between 2021-22 before joining the East Village Times team in 2024. He also posts baseball content on his YouTube channel “Stat Nerd Baseball”, creating content around trades, hypotheticals, player analyses, the San Diego Padres, and MLB as a whole.
A 2024 graduate of San Diego State, Diego aims to grow as a writer and content creator in the baseball community.
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