Padres' Top Pitcher Wants to Shockingly Pitch in Win-Or-Go-Home Game 5 vs Dodgers

Will he pitch in Game 5?

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San Diego Padres starting pitcher Michael King might have just started for the Padres on Tuesday in Game 3 of the National League Division Series, but he wants to pitch again in Game 5 — as a reliever.

King is in his first season as a full-time starter for the Padres, after primarily pitching as a reliever throughout his career. Prior to the 2024 season, King had never started more than nine games in a season.

Since the New York Yankees traded King to the Padres last December, King has turned into a starter for San Diego — and arguably their best on the season. King started 30 games for the Padres this season, going 13-9 with a 2.95 ERA and 201 strikeouts over the course of the regular season.

The Padres have not ruled out the option of using King as a reliever in Game 5, as Padres manager Mike Shildt said, "never say never," per AJ Cassavell of MLB.com.

“Conversations have been had,” King said. “I’m not getting the answers that I’d like to get. But I’m continuing to try to be available.”

King does know that the Padres don't necessarily need him, but would still like to contribute in the scenario they do.

“We have a stacked bullpen,” King said, via Cassavell. “So it’s not, like, a need. But I’m still begging. … I was a reliever.”

The ideal scenario for the Padres of course would be to not use King. The Padres are starting Yu Darvish, and if the start goes well, they should not need King at all. If Darvish pitches the way he did in his start on Sunday, San Diego would not need to utilize King. On Sunday, Darvish pitched seven innings, allowing three hits, one earned run, and two walks while striking out three. Thanks to his successful start over seven innings, the Padres only had to use Tanner Scott and Alek Jacob after.

The current plan is for King to pitch a bullpen session on Friday, and if the Padres advance, he'll start for the team in Game 1 of the NL Championship Series. King has already started two games for the Padres during the 2024 postseason. He had a great first start against the Atlanta Braves, allowing five hits and no earned runs or walks while striking out 12. He was not as strong in his next start, allowing five earned runs over five innings, though the Padres managed to come away with the win in Game 3.