The San Diego Padres have made several players available through trade this offseason and according to the latest rumor that includes right-handed starting pitcher Michael King. Meanwhile, the Chicago Cubs have been trying to add to their pitching staff this winter and although they just traded for veteran Ryan Pressly the Cubs are now also exploring a blockbuster trade with the Padres.
According to Matthew Trueblood, the Cubs are not only kicking the tires on a potential trade for King, but they’ve also tossed around the idea of dealing for King and current San Diego closer Robert Suarez.
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One version of a deal the Cubs and Padres have explored could send King and Suarez to Chicago, with multiple young, controllable pieces going back to San Diego. Javier Assad, Ben Brown, and Kevin Alcántara are potential pieces in a return. One way or another, the deal would probably include players with MLB experience and/or those very close to the majors, like those three, as opposed to far-off prospects.
King, who will be a free agent following the 2025 season, was great for the Padres last season. The right-handed pitcher recorded a 2.95 ERA with a 27.7 K% in 173.2 innings. Although King only has one full season as a starter, he’s been one of the best pitchers in baseball since the beginning of the 2021 season. Since then, King’s 2.91 ERA in 392.2 innings ranks seventh best among qualified pitchers.
As for Suarez, the 33-year-old reliever is in year three of a five-year, $46 million contract. However, the righty can opt-out following this season. In 2024, Suarez made 65 appearances and recorded 36 saves with a 2.77 ERA in 65 innings of work. Since making his MLB debut with the Padres in 2022, Suarez has a 2.89 ERA in 136 relief outings.
So, the main issue here is that the Cubs would be giving up some good, inexpensive players for potentially two rentals. However, Trueblood notes that if the Cubs do indeed acquire King, then they would likely try to lock up the pitcher longterm as soon as possible.
If the Cubs do land King, look for them to broach a long-term extension with him in spring training. That’s still several twists of the drama from now, but the team has liked King for years, dating back to his time with the Yankees. Because he’s bloomed late and dealt with injury issues after being a late-round pick with a small initial signing bonus, King (unlike Tucker, or Cease, for that matter) is a good candidate for an extension even a year out from free agency.
They might be willing to pay more for him than they would for Cease, not only because he’d cost them less in 2025 monetarily, but because they would view King as a possible long-term piece.
The 29-year-old pitcher and the Padres did not agree on a salary as King asked for $8.8 million while San Diego filed at $7.325 million.
The article also mentioned a potential three-team trade involving the Minnesota Twins and Padres in which the Cubs would end up with Suarez.
Getting either pitcher would be fantastic for the Cubs and acquiring both would solidify any holes remaining on the pitching staff entering 2025. No idea if Jed Hoyer will be able to pull it off, but there’s no better time than now to use the team’s top prospects to improve the team for this season and in the longterm as well if extending King becomes a priority.
No way this is ever happening.
Jed doesn’t have the Cojones to do any of this.