The San Diego Padres are reportedly exploring the possibility of trading ace Michael King. King is projected to land a deal worth $71 million when he hits free agency, per Spotrac.
Bleacher Report’s Zachary Rymer recently predicted the Padres would trade King this season. Rymer also listed four teams, the New York Mets, Atlanta Braves, Baltimore Orioles, and Chicago Cubs, as the most likely landing spots for the righty.
“He was a breakout candidate going into 2024 and he more than lived up to the hype. He especially dominated with a 2.34 ERA in his last 21 starts, and was so hard to square up that he landed in the 99th percentile for exit velocity,” Rymer wrote. “Factoring in King’s relatively affordable salary, there’s an argument for him as the best starter who could be available this summer. As such, look for the Padres to try to rent him out for multiple controllable players if they do eventually shop him.”
If King is able to continue to improve in 2025, he’ll certainly decline his 2026 mutual option, which means he’s likely viewed as a rental trade piece this season.
Either way, each of the four teams listed by Rymer is in win-now mode. Acquiring a rental ace like King would be the ultimate trade acquisition for cheaper than some of the controllable arms on the market.
To further the idea, each of these four teams would likely have the money to re-sign King at the end of the season. Acquiring him may look like a rental acquisition, but if the front office of the acquiring team is aggressive enough, it doesn’t have to end up that way.
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