Former Yankees Pitcher Suffers Knee Injury

A former New York Yankees pitcher is heading back to the injured list after returning from a long stint on it last weekend.

Per MLB.com's transaction log, the San Diego Padres placed right-handed starter Michael King on the 15-day IL with left knee inflammation on Thursday.

King was reinstated from the 60-day IL with a shoulder injury last Saturday. He started against the Boston Red Sox that same night and allowed two earned runs over two innings while throwing 57 pitches.

He was placed on the 15-day IL with right shoulder inflammation on May 25 after recording a 2.59 ERA across his first 10 outings of the year. King was transferred to the 60-day IL on July 7, but that move was procedural in nature rather than signaling that he had suffered a setback.

King threw 61 pitches over 3 1/3 innings for Triple-A El Paso in the only start of his rehab assignment on August 3 before returning to the majors last Saturday.

He was picked in the 12th round of the 2016 MLB Draft by the Miami Marlins. He was traded to the Yankees the following year on November 20, 2017 for left-handed pitcher Caleb Smith and first baseman/outfielder Garrett Cooper.

New York first called King up to the majors on September 19, 2019, and he allowed no earned runs vs. the Texas Rangers in his big-league debut on September 27.

After posting a subpar 7.76 ERA in nine appearances (four starts) and 26 2/3 innings during the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign, King posted a 3.55 ERA and 1.0 bWAR over 22 games (six starts) in 2021.

Fully transitioning to the bullpen for the 2022 season, King logged a 2.29 ERA and 1.9 bWAR in 34 contests and 51 innings before fracturing his elbow on July 22, ending his year.