Yankees Pitcher Reunion Great Makes Sense

The American League East arms race is on and it's time for New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman to step up to the plate.

The Yankees will head into the 2026 season with ace Gerrit Cole (Tommy John surgery), right-hander Clarke Schmidt (Tommy John surgery) and left-hander Carlos Rodon (elbow surgery) on the shelf.

With that in mind, MLB.com's Will Leitch says New York should consider a reunion with San Diego Padres right-hander Michael King, who's on the free-agent market.

Back To The Future

"Look, if you get a chance to trade for Juan Soto, you have to do it, even if there’s a possibility (and it turned out to be an inevitability) that he might leave at the end of the season," Leitch notes. "You can’t blame the Yankees for putting King in their Soto package two years ago, but it still had to be frustrating to see him go from a solid pitcher in the Bronx to essentially an ace in San Diego.

"The Yanks, who could use starting pitching (like everybody else, of course), have a chance to bring King back, and they could certainly use him. Even better: If they sign him, we can all feel reasonably certain they will not trade him for Soto again," Leitch adds.

Hitting The Market

King became a free agent earlier this month when he opted out of his contract with the Padres. Instead of getting $15 million from San Diego for the 2026 season, he hit the open market after accepting a $3.75 million buyout.

The Padres gave King the one-year qualifying offer, but he turned down the $22.05 million deal. That means any club signing King will owe San Diego draft-pick compensation.