San Diego Padres and Michael King agree to new contract, avoid arbitration hearing

Since taking over as Padres general manager in 2014, AJ Preller has never had to attend an arbitration hearing with a player. It looked for a while like that streak would end in 2025 when the Friars and starting pitcher Michael King couldn't agree to a deal before the deadline. The two sides were about $1.4 million apart.

On Friday, they met in the middle and took a very interesting road to get there.

King and the Friars agreed to a one-year contract with a $1 million base salary and a $3 million signing bonus. But, he's going to make a lot more than just $4 million. The deal includes a $15 million mutual option for the 2026 season and a $3.75 million buyout if that option is declined by either side, guaranteeing King at least $7.75 million.

Over the last week, King's name had surfaced in trade rumors as teams started calling the Padres about his availability, and who could blame them for trying? In his first full season as a big league starter, the 29-year-old was phenomenal with a 2.95 ERA over 173.2 innings. His best start of the year came in the National League Wild Card series, when King became the first pitcher in history to throw at 7.0 shutout innings with at least 12 strikeouts in his postseason debut.

The way the deal is structured gives the Padres a little bit of relief in terms of the Competitive Balance Tax. San Diego is trying to stay under the $241 million threshold. Now that King, their final arbitration-eligible player, is on board, they're sitting about $4 million under that number, according to Spotrac.

It's not much, but it might allow the Padres to hang on to fellow starting pitcher Dylan Cease and reigning NL batting champion Luis Arraez, both of whom also have one year left before hitting free agency and have been the subject of trade overtures from opposing clubs.

Padres pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training at the Peoria Sports Complex on Feb. 12.