The Padres know they can rely on Michael King. It’s a level of trust the right-hander has earned as the anchor of San Diego’s starting rotation for much of the past three seasons.
Even when he hasn’t been at his sharpest, the Padres’ faith in him hasn’t wavered. King has rewarded them in turn for that belief.
But as the Padres’ beleaguered rotation continues to show signs of instability, and struggled to help the club stay afloat in an ever-tightening National League playoff race, King’s consistency has arguably never been more important than it is right now.
Entering Tuesday night’s series opener against the Rockies 1 1/2 games out of a Wild Card spot, with three teams to jump, San Diego’s hopes of contending are being greatly tested -- enough to potentially justify selling at Monday’s rapidly-approaching Trade Deadline.
For all their struggles, the Padres are still within striking distance of a postseason spot after sweeping the Marlins over the weekend. But they know there’s still work to be done.
“We got to start stringing together some wins,” King said following his last start against the Braves. “It’s crazy, because I think of how poorly we’ve played and I look and we’re [still in it] ... we’ve played terribly. If we get on a little bit of a run, [a playoff spot] is very attainable.”
Given the rotation’s struggles, and the injuries to Nick Pivetta, Joe Musgrove and Lucas Giolito, San Diego has tightened the leash on all of its starters aside from King and Walker Buehler.
It has forced manager Craig Stammen to find creative ways to cover innings by piggybacking starters and playing matchups with the pieces he has available. It’s an effective strategy, but not a sustainable one.
And that’s why King’s steadiness is so vital. He is the only Padres starter to go six innings since June 3. He’s done so six times.
Even when King’s best stuff has evaded him, he has still given the Padres a chance to win more often than not. And he’s started to look a lot sharper recently, with a 1.96 ERA over his past four starts, including six innings of one-run ball last time out against the Braves in Atlanta.
“Very competitive person, it’s a talent to be able to do that -- to not have your best stuff and give your team a chance to win,” Stammen said. “Eventually, hopefully, he gets on a roll like we’ve seen Michael do. In the end, the results are pretty darn good. He knows if he keeps pitching like [he has], sooner or later things may not fall his way. But he knows he’s going to continue to keep working and be sharp and eventually, the work he’s doing is going to translate to the game.”
King wants to be the stopper the Padres believe he can be, and it’s hardly surprising that he is often critical of his performance when he takes the mound. At the very least, King takes pride in his ability to navigate through starts when things aren’t going his way -- and how that skill has evolved since he became a full-time starter in his first season with San Diego in 2024.
“I felt like in ‘24, it was a good learning experience for me to be like, ‘Alright, you’re in some bad situations and you need to help the team out by getting out of it,’” King said. “Most of the time, as a reliever, it was later innings, but you’re in the first inning. You don’t want to give up a four spot and put the team at a deficit.”
That mentality will be crucial for him if the Padres want to remain in contention. Reinforcements could be on the way at the Deadline, but that’s if the club decides to buy. If San Diego ends up being a seller, King himself could be a trade chip.
The Padres go as King goes. Can he continue to be the stabilizer they need?