Chicago Cubs Appear Out On Another Free Agent Pitcher

The Chicago Cubs will be very active this offseason to upgrade their rotation. 

The Cubs’ top focus is to add some starting pitching this winter. With Clay Holmes, Kevin Gausman, Shota Imanaga, David Peterson, and Matthew Boyd all potentially leaving in free agency, the front office needs to replace those starters before the start of the 2027 season. 

Cubs fans already know that the North Siders won’t pursue dominant left-handed starter Tarik Skubal this offseason. While signing a pitcher like Skubal would have made a huge difference, the team was never going to pay over $300 million for a pitcher. 

That will force the Cubs to pivot to the second tier of free agent pitchers this offseason. That group consists of starters like Michael King, Freddy Peralta, Clay Holmes, Sonny Gray, and Robbie Ray. 

King would really be the perfect fit for this Cubs rotation in 2027 and beyond. He would be the top-of-the-line starter Chicago desperately needs and would address many of the team’s pitching needs heading into the year. 

King has posted solid numbers since converting to a full-time starter before the 2024 season. He finished with a 2.95 ERA and 201 strikeouts over 173 ⅔ innings in 2024, had a 3.44 ERA and 76 strikeouts over 73 ⅓ innings in 2025, and ended with a 3.21 ERA and 159 strikeouts over 185 innings in 2026. 

While King’s strikeout rate (21%) dipped this past season, it didn’t stop him from having another productive year on the mound. He finished in the 93rd percentile in Pitching Run Value, in the 89th percentile in Breaking Run Value, and in the 98th percentile in Offspeed Run Value. 

The Cubs also got a firsthand look at King during the 2026 playoffs. The 31-year-old veteran threw seven shutout innings with eight strikeouts against the North Siders in Game 1 of the National League Wild Card Round. 

As great as it would be for the Cubs to land someone of King’s caliber in free agency, it doesn’t sound likely to happen. Cubs insider Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic reported that Chicago and King don’t appear to be a fit. 

“One name who could make sense from outside the organization is Michael King, but there are questions about the fit and potential price,” Sharma wrote. “It could come down to cost. King opted out of the final year of a three-year, $75 million deal with the San Diego Padres. It’s likely his contract won’t match what the Cubs feel is the right value.”

Spotrac lists King’s market value at five years, $149.5 million. If that's the contract the former Padres pitcher is seeking, it’s fair to assume the Cubs would be out at that price.