3 Padres Who Should Be First-Time All-Stars In 2026

Even though he’s a closer, San Diego Padres' Mason Miller has a case to be the National League’s starting pitcher in the 2026 MLB All-Star Game in Philadelphia. His 1.4 fWAR this season is better than all but five starters, and his 0.86 ERA is worse than only Shohei Ohtani’s. Years from now, baseball nerds will ask their friends, “Remember when Mason Miller had a negative FIP?” They’ll referring to the halcyon days of May 2026. 

But Miller should not be the Padres' lone pitching representative at the All-Star Game, not when the staff is the reason the team is keeping pace with the Dodgers in the NL West. Below are three Padres pitchers who, so far this season, are worthy of their first All-Star nod.

Michael King, SP

The Padres have no less than five starting pitchers on the injured list, including Nick Pivetta and Joe Musgrove. It’s why the team took a flier on free agent starting pitcher Lucas Giolito, and it’s why they’re considering bringing Jake Peavy out of retirement. (Just kidding. I think.) Michael King has always been good, pitching to a career 3.18 ERA, but this year he has been a savior.

Through nine starts, King has posted a 2.63 ERA, a 155 ERA+, and 0.9 fWAR, making him one of twenty most valuable pitchers in the National League. By any metric, he is on pace to have a career year, and as a just-short-of-elite veteran on a reasonable contract, he’s emblematic of the post-Peter Seidler era.

The predictive stats indicate he’s been a little lucky this season. His expected batting average against is higher than the actual number, and his FIP is a full point higher than his ERA. Not everyone can be Mason Miller. But luck hardly explains King’s performance this season. He has an elite off-speed repertoire, which keeps hitters off balance, allowing him to avoid getting hit hard. Despite an average fastball velocity of 93.2 mph, just 13.3% of batted balls off King are pulled in the air, and his hard-hit percentage is in the 86th percentile, according to Baseball Savant.

King is simply a great pitcher, and he’s worthy of his first All-Star selection.

Randy Vásquez, SP

Along with King, starting pitcher Randy Vásquez was one of the key pieces in the trade that sent Juan Soto from the Padres to the New York Yankees after the 2023 season. Back then, he was the Yankees' No. 13 prospect, a 24-year-old with promise. After a pretty poor 2024 season and a merely decent season last year, Vásquez’s career began indicating more hope than anything else.

Heading into 2026, Vásquez was the question mark of the rotation behind King, Pivetta, and Musgrove. “With a lack of better options at this point, Vasquez is pretty well set to be part of the rotation this year, whether it be at the No. 4 or 5 spot,” Padres Mission’s Steve Drumwright wrote in February. Fast forward to May, and he’s indisputably the Padres' second-best starting pitcher. In fact, Vásquez has produced 1.0 fWAR, practically aligning him in value with King, and the two share nearly identical stat lines. If King is deserving of an All-Star nod, then so is Vásquez.

Bradgley Rodriguez, RP

Purely on historical precedent, Bradgley Rodriguez is unlikely to make the All-Star Game. No more than a couple non-closer relievers get selected every year. It’s rarer still for non-setup guys to get recognition. The fact that, last year, the Padres became the first team ever to send three relievers to the All-Star Game—Robert Suarez, Jason Adam, and Adrian Morejon—speaks to the difficulty for relievers to get their just due. Although, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Padres repeat that feat, what with Miller, Morejon, Adam, and now Rodriguez in the fold. 

It’s difficult to know where to start with Rodriguez, for he has been a revelation across the board. Traditional stats? Sure: 22.2 inning pitched, a 1.59 ERA, no home runs allowed, and just five walks. Advanced stats? Why not: An expected ERA in the 99th-percentile, to go along with 0.5 fWAR. Statcast? He throws hard, his off-speed pitches are elite, and nothing he throws is hit hard. It's not a stretch to say the right-hander is one of the best middle relievers in baseball, which may just get him some love as a potential injury replacement around the Midsummer Classic.