Dodgers might be overlooking perfect free agent fit they can steal from rival Padres

The Los Angeles Dodgers don't need another starting pitcher, at least not in the way they needed a high-leverage relief pitcher before they signed Edwin Diaz to a three-year deal.

There are concerns that Tyler Glasnow is on the trade block, but even if such a situation came to fruition, the Dodgers would still field a starting rotation consisting of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani, Roki Sasaki, Blake Snell, Emmet Sheehan, River Ryan, Kyle Hurt, and Justin Wrobleski. We challenge you to find one MLB team with more talent or depth at the position.

Still, as Dodgers fans know all too well, injuries are an inevitable part of the game, and Los Angeles' rotation is particularly prone to them. Bringing in another upper-echelon starter, even if he were also an injury risk, wouldn't be the worst way to spend a few (read: millions) more dollars.

That only becomes more true if signing such a pitcher also involved taking him away from a chief division rival.

Dodgers should sign Michael King to round out rotation, spite Padres

Simply put, the Padres' rotation is a mess. Nick Pivetta (who is shockingly also on the trade block) is the ostensible staff ace after a career-best season at age 32; Joe Musgrove, who hasn't pitched since 2024 due to Tommy John surgery, is the No. 2 starter; Randy Vásquez (1.6 fWAR in 270 career innings) and JP Sears (5.04 ERA in 2025) round out the middle of the rotation; and there's currently no fifth starter option, other than perhaps swingman Kyle Hart.

It's not exactly a terrifying bunch, and the Padres' financial constraints will all but keep them out of Michael King's free-agent market. After losing Dylan Cease (free agency) and Yu Darvish (injury), the last thing the Friars need is to watch the Dodgers sign their best pitcher.

I'm sure you can see where we are going with this. The Dodgers already reign supreme in the NL West. Adding King would be overkill, sure, but it'd just about put the division out of reach for any would-be challengers (yes, we recognize the danger of saying this in December).

In 2024, his first full season as a starter, King recorded a 2.95 ERA and 3.33 FIP in 173 2/3 innings while accruing 3.9 fWAR. Injuries held him back this past season, but he still posted a 3.44 ERA in 73 1/3 innings while striking out nearly a quarter of all the hitters he faced.

That's a darn good starting pitcher, especially for a projected price tag of $20-$25 million annually (on a shorter-term deal, likely). King wouldn't even have to handle one of the top spots in the rotation thanks to all of the Dodgers' incumbent talent, and he could feast against other opposing No. 4 or No. 5 starters.

Again, other, higher priorities exist on the roster. Adding another marquee starter is hardly as important as bringing in more bullpen arms or figuring out who will replace Michael Conforto in left field. But, in what's been a difficult offseason for the rest of the NL West, the Dodgers could lay the hammer down by signing Michael King.