Padres fans should feel real relief after Michael King’s spring training debut

Spring training box scores are junk food. Fun, noisy, and mostly meaningless. But Michael King’s first outing? That actually matters.

King made his spring debut in a 7-3 win over the Angels and looked like a guy who’s tired of hearing the word “limited.” He struck out four, allowed two hits, and — more importantly — worked with pace and purpose for 2 2/3 innings after being scheduled for “at least two.” Craig Stammen basically admitted the Padres let him keep going because he looked too good to pull. 

Padres just got a crucial spring training reminder of what Michael King can be

The radar and the command both agreed. King needed just 37 pitches, poured in 26 strikes, and sat at 93.4 mph with the sinker — almost a full tick harder than last year. He carved through a nine-pitch first, set down his first six batters, and the only real blemish was Christian Moore’s leadoff shot in the third.

Yes, it’s only February. But a healthy King is the most stabilizing thing the Padres can possibly show early, because 2025 turned into an interruption marathon — shoulder and knee issues, a long midseason absence, and a finish that never really got back to “ace.” MLB.com notes he was limited to 15 starts last year and wasn’t as sharp when he returned. 

King isn’t hiding from that. He said he felt like he “let the team down” by only being there for roughly 70 innings and made it clear he wants to pitch 200. That’s a mission statement — and it’s exactly what the Padres are buying with that three-year, $75 million deal they gave him in December. 

If King is that guy again — the one who finished seventh in NL Cy Young voting in 2024 — the Padres’ rotation stops feeling like a collection of question marks and starts feeling like an identity. 

Because for the first time in a while, he looked like a pitcher the Padres can actually plan around.