MLB insider has Padres pitcher signing massive free agent contract with Orioles

It doesn't seem like the Padres will ever get out of the way of the rumors circulating their two best pitchers. Michael King and Dylan Cease have piqued several clubs' interest since the start of this past offseason, and it does not appear that the rumors will fizzle out with the season commencing.

Jim Bowden of The Athletic dropped a list of predictions for the 2025 campaign, and Padres fans may want to look away. He has both right-handed aces going to the Baltimore Orioles, but taking different paths to the AL East organization.

Bowden predicts that King will sign with the Orioles in the offseason on a lucrative five-year, $182 million deal, but it doesn't stop there. He also forecasts the O's trading for Cease in exchange for youngsters in Coby Mayo and Cade Povich.

The Athletic predicts Michael King and Dylan Cease each departing from the Padres

Starting off with King, that predicted contract would have tied for the seventh-highest deal among starting pitchers. Blake Snell of the Dodgers is currently on a deal worth $182 million. Only Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Gerrit Cole, Max Fried, Corbin Burnes, and Jacob deGrom would be earning more than King in this scenario.

If King can replicate his 2024 season, which saw him place seventh in the National League Cy Young vote with a 2.95 ERA, then perhaps he would be worth that money. He only turns 30 this season, and he has fairly low mileage on his arm. It would be sad to see him go with no return for San Diego, but if he can have another All-Star-level season, then he deserves to be paid in that realm.

As for Cease, who may have taken a few more headlines than King when it comes to leaving the Padres, this hypothetical trade wouldn't be too bad for the Friars. Mayo, a corner infielder, is Baltimore's No. 2 prospect and 13th overall in baseball. He has a ton of power, so acquiring him alone would be beneficial from a cost and value perspective.

If you were to add Povich to the mix, a tall left-handed pitcher who dominated this spring, this trade wouldn't sting too much as opposed to just seeing King walk for nothing. At this point, we'll believe it when we see it, though. King and Cease have dominated the trade rumors, and perhaps it is very likely to happen. Until then, Friars fans can just sit back and try to enjoy however many starts these two aces have left with San Diego.