San Diego Padres pitcher Michael King declined his mutual option for the 2026 season. As a result, the right-hander will become a free agent for the first time in his career. 

King was only set to make $15 million for the 2026 season, so his decision to decline the mutual option doesn’t come as a surprise. The Padres will now have only a few days to decide whether to give the 30-year-old a $22.05 million qualifying offer. 

While the Padres will almost certainly extend the qualifying offer to him, there’s a strong chance King will decline that as well. 

With the right-hander set to become a free agent, should the Cubs be in on him this offseason? Let’s dive into his 2025 stats, his potential contract, and his fit in the Windy City. 

The Player

King spent his first few years as a reliever with the New York Yankees. He posted solid numbers in the bullpen before being the main piece in the Juan Soto trade back in December of 2023. The Padres saw his potential and wanted to convert him to a full-time starter. 

In his first two years as a full-time starter, King has not disappointed. He finished with a 2.95 ERA and 201 strikeouts across 31 appearances (30 starts) for the Padres in 2024 and then had a 3.44 ERA and 76 strikeouts across 15 starts this past season. 

King missed most of the 2025 season due to a thoracic nerve in his throwing arm. That injury caused him to miss most of May, all of June, all of July, and the first week of August. Then, the right-hander missed another month shortly after returning due to some knee inflammation. 

Although King’s 2025 season wasn’t as strong as the year prior, he was still a dominant pitcher on the mound when healthy. Both his strikeout rate (24.7%) and hard-hit rate (38.1%) ranked in the upper half of the league. 

The Contract

King will enter free agency as the second tier of pitchers available on the open market. Dylan Cease, Ranger Suarez, and Framber Valdez will all likely command contracts over $150 million this offseason. 

However, different outlets don’t predict King’s new contract to exceed that much. Spotrac predicts a four-year, $91 million deal for the right-hander this winter, while Jim Bowden of The Athletic believes he could sign a three-year, $75 million contract. 

That means King could sign a deal somewhere between $22 million and $25 million per year. That’s a big difference from what the market predicts for other pitchers like Valdez, Cease, and even Suarez. 

The Fit

This is actually a solid fit for the Cubs. He won’t cost as much money as some of the other top pitchers on the free agent market, and King is really in the same category as them. This is a pitcher who has finished with a sub-3.50 ERA in both of his seasons as a starter. 

Additionally, he would bring some major strikeout upside to this Cubs rotation. He struck out over 200 batters in his full 2024 season, and most of Chicago’s pitchers don’t have swing-and-miss stuff like King does. 

That would fit perfectly in this Cubs’ rotation. A starting rotation of King, Matthew Boyd, Jameson Taillon, Cade Horton, Shota Imanaga (if he returns), and Justin Steele would be one of the best in baseball. 

The Verdict

From the Cubs' perspective, King feels like the pitcher that the front office will be most willing to go after in free agency. He will likely cost less money per year, could agree to a shorter three or four-year deal, and won’t be as expensive as the Tier 1 pitchers. 

For that reason, King could be a Cub this offseason. He would fit nicely into this rotation, and the front office probably wouldn’t have to pay him over $90 million.