Michael King's Return Is A Critical Component Of The Padres' Stretch Run

[Ryan Hernandez]

In his first game back from injury, Michael King pitched two innings and recorded a strikeout, allowed two walks, and allowed two earned runs on four hits against the Red Sox. King only threw 57 pitches before being pulled in the third inning.

King, now 30 years old, made only a single Triple-A rehab start before returning to the Padres’ rotation. It is expected that he will need several more turns in the major league rotation to work himself back to a full starter’s workload.

Addressing his return, King said: “The release point was off on some pitches, but I had to make those adjustments.” He added that “when I’m really rolling I can make those one-pitch adjustments. It took me a couple pitches to adjust, but I’ll definitely be faster with those adjustments in my next outings.”

Despite the short outing and poor performance, the Padres found a way to win. They walked off in the bottom of the 10th to defeat Boston 5-4 thanks to Ramon Laureano’s walk-off single. King is optimistic that his performance will improve over his next few starts as he continues to get back into form and help the Padres in their playoff push.

King’s next projected start will be against the Dodgers on the road, where he has the potential to help the Padres keep their NL West division lead over the Dodgers. King has 11 starts this season with a 2.81 ERA, 57 ⅔ innings picked, 65 strikeouts, and a 1.09 WHIP. 

King is set to be a free agent this offseason.

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