Contract years form some of the most fascinating storylines of every MLB season, and this year the San Diego Padres are right in the thick of the contract-year action. The Padres have two players with contract years, and both starters Nick Pivetta and Michael King will play a pivotal role in whatever success San Diego has this season.
What’s especially intriguing about these particular contract years is that they’re not necessarily apparent at first. They’re player options that were inserted to give both Pivetta and King the opportunity to hit the market again if they outperform their current deal, and Pivetta has certainly done that in spades.
Given that, let’s consider him first. According to Thomas Harrigan of MLB.com, the Padres raised a lot of eyebrows when they elected to give Pivetta a four-year, $55 million deal, given that the former Boston Red Sox and Philadelphia Phillies right-hander had never posted an ERA lower than 4.04.
Pivetta then went out and had a career year in 2025, with 190 strikeouts in 181-2/3 innings to go with a 2.87 ERA, and now he has an opt-out at the end of 2026. If he posts similar stats he’ll be in line for a huge payday, which is part of the reason GM A.J. Preller has been shopping Pivetta given that the Padres are up for sale with what seems to be serious payroll limitations.
King’s situation is very different. His 2025 season wasn’t good at all due to injuries, so the payday he was hoping to get in free agency this offseason never materialized. As a result, Preller decided to get creative and give King the opportunity to opt out after the 2026 season.
But King’s contract year is basically a prove-it deal, whereas Pivetta has already done that. King needs to stay injury-free, and he was more than honest in his comments about wanting to land back on the East Coast after he signed a three-year deal with the Padres that’s really more of a stacked series of option years.
None of this is ideal for the Padres or their two starters, but this is where San Diego is, payroll- and ownership-wise, right now. Plenty of teams go into a season with a key player facing a contract year, but the Padres now have half their rotation in that situation, which means there could be plenty of volatility and scrambling happening with the club, Pivetta and King between now and the end of the 2026 season.