Mike King

Yankees: Aaron Boone praises Michael King’s fantastic performance, says he’ll be a ‘real contributor’

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New York Yankees, Michael King

When the New York Yankees needed him the most after a shaky start by Domingo German, Michael King put on the Superman suit and saved the day for the Bombers. Sadly, it didn’t result in a win as the team lost to the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday’s series finale, but the long reliever kept them in the game with a brilliant outing.

When everything was said and done, the Yankees’ right-hander, who worked diligently during the offseason to improve the effectiveness of his breaking pitches, spun six scoreless innings, with three strikeouts.

King pitched like his last name would indicate, as he proceeded to retire the last 16 Blue Jays he faced. And we are not talking about a mediocre offense.

“I was able to lock it in, was able to get ahead of almost everybody, throwing both sinker-cutter for strikes,” said King, per SNY. “Had some pretty good changeups. I was just able to get ahead of the count, and get in dugout as fast as I can, so it was good.”

The Yankees’ righty is off to a great start

The Yankees’ pitcher famously said a few weeks ago that he doesn’t care which way he achieves it, but he wants to pitch 100 quality innings for the Bronx Bombers.

“Well he’s got six in the books, so it’s a good start for him,” said manager Aaron Boone. “Look, he’s come a long way. I feel like he, along with a few other guys, have really shown real significant improvement, and today I think proved it. He’s certainly on our board as somebody that can do a lot of things for us. … How it all adds up in the end, I don’t know, but I feel like he’s put himself in a good spot to be a real contributor.”

The Yankees are deep at the rotation, but King will take advantage of any opportunity that appears in front of him.

“Ideally, I’d love to be a starter [but] I also pride myself in being versatile,” King said. “If I’m versatile, I feel like I’m able to be used in any circumstance, and then hopefully I kind of just get the confidence of the coaches to put me in those situations.”

Yankees: Michael King made some adjustments and is now a breakout candidate

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New York Yankees, Michael King

The time to identify bold breakout candidates for the 2021 season is probably now, before spring training begins. News sites and blogs make this exercise every year, including the league’s official site, MLB.com. In its latest article, the circuit’s writers broke down a player in each team poised to have an incredible 2021 season. For the New York Yankees, Bryan Hoch listed a surprising candidate.

To this day, Michael King’s upside was thought to be fairly low. However, Hoch seems to think that he is a candidate to break out next season. In 2020, he didn’t have a very good campaign, pitching 26.2 innings of a 7.76 ERA (5.14 FIP) with a 21.5 K% and a 9.1 BB%.

The 25-year-old right-handed pitcher may have the opportunity of his life with the Yankees in 2021. The team doesn’t have too many options after Gerrit Cole, Domingo German, Deivi García, and Jordan Montgomery, and if spring training goes well and the Bombers don’t bring any reinforcements, he could even make the rotation in an unlikely, but possible scenario.

The Yankees worked with King to refine the axis of his changeup

Hoch wrote that King “benefited from his time at the Yankees’ alternate training site this past summer, where he huddled with pitching coordinator Sam Briend to refine the axis of his changeup, giving it a different profile than his fastball. The right-hander saw results in the AL Division Series, retiring all six Rays he faced in a Game 3 relief appearance.”

If he can somehow maintain the gains he made in the Yankees’ alternate training site, it’s fair to wonder if the Yankees managed to increase King’s upside and potential.

Per Hoch, “King has also changed his slider into a curveball, tinkering with improvements that he believes will help him secure a rotation spot in 2021.”

Could it be that the Yankees have unearthed a pitching gem from the internal options they had? The team needs quality innings badly, and by the look of things, they won’t be spending too much money in payroll for 2021. The moment, for King, is now.

New York Yankees’ Mike King could be an important contributor in a short season

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New York Yankees, Michael King

MLB and the players association are currently discussing a plan to play this year in Arizona, with no fans in the stands and respecting some social distancing rules whenever possible. Of course, talks are at a very early stage and there is no certainty that we are going to see the New York Yankees taking another shot at the World Series this year.

Given that we are in mid-April and that a season wouldn’t start until May or June at the earliest, we are talking about a shortened, compressed schedule. Playing 162 games in 2020 is probably unrealistic. MLB knows that, and the Yankees know that, as well.

That is why teams with more depth could benefit from the situation. If there are going to be doubleheaders and few rest days, then we are talking about expanded rosters, significantly larger than 26 spots. This would be done to help clubs cope with a tight schedule, respecting pitchers’ rest days and the workloads that players’ bodies have grown accustomed for years.

For the Yankees, that would be a blessing in disguise. And, it could mean increased opportunities for some of the young guns in the roster, particularly pitching prospects.

Especially since Domingo German would be suspended for most of the shortened season, the New York Yankees would need contributions from the likes of Ben Heller, Jonathan Holder, Jonathan Loaisiga, Clarke Schmidt and Mike King.

The Yankees’ jack-of-all-trades

King is a right-handed pitcher who seems ready for the big leagues, whether it is as a starter or in the bullpen. He had a very good 2018, reaching Triple-A and having a 1.15 ERA in 39.0 frames there. However, he had a few injury bumps in 2019 that limited him to a single MLB appearance, in which he didn’t allow runs in two innings.

Near the end of last month, Brendan Kuty reported that the Yankees’ youngster could return to the majors if MLB expands rosters at the start of the season.

“King struggled through a rough spring and was consequently optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Thursday. However, he was in competition for a spot in the starting rotation throughout training camp, making him a feasible option to rejoin the big-league club if rosters expand as is widely expected. Should King be called back up, he would likely be used in a long-relief and emergency starter role,” per Kuty.

King’s biggest trait is his ability to induce ground balls. He had a 1.87 GB/FB ratio in 23.2 Triple-A innings in 2019, and a 1.56 mark in 2018 at the same level. King uses a sinker as his go-to pitch, and he kills the worms with it. To complement his arsenal, he has a usable slider/changeup combo. It won’t blow hitters away, but it may be enough to perform like a fourth or fifth starter down the road, which is good!

Let’s see what 2020 has in store for the Yankees’ righty. But first, let’s hope there is a season to watch.

New York Yankees Prospects: Michael King

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New York Yankees, Michael King

The New York Yankees 25th best prospect in their minor league system might have a major impact whenever the season gets under way. Michael King is a pitcher that a lot of Yankees fans have heard about in the last couple of years. The 6’3 right hander was acquired from Marlins back in 2017 and he immediately made a big impact in the minors. In his first season in the Yankees system, King went 11-5 with a 1.79 ERA. He pitches his way from A+ all the way to AAA. In AAA he really shined going 4-0 in six starts with an ERA of 1.15. King was dominating and he did so with his great control. In his 39 innings in AAA, King struck out 31 batters while only walking six. A lot of folks thought King was going to be a rotation option for the Yankees in 2019, but the Yankees injury bug struck again.

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Derailed 2019

Last spring when King was getting ready for the season, he felt some discomfort in his pitching elbow. Everything came to a screeching halt, and King was sidelined until August with the elbow injury. In his four starts at AAA last year, King went 3-1 with a 4.18 ERA in 23.2 innings. In those 23 plus innings King kept the walks down while striking out 28 batters. King played his way up and got a chance with the big league club at the end of the year. King pitched in one game for the Yankees and he threw two scoreless innings. As a pitcher, King really relies on his fastball. He probably has the best control out of any pitching prospect the Yankees have in their farm system. His breaking pitches are nothing spectacular, but his fastball is so good that he’s able to get away with a lot.

Role in 2020

This year, King was projected to compete for a spot in the Yankees rotation. James Paxton and Luis Severino were both sidelined with injuries and Domingo German was suspended. Now with the Covid-19 pandemic, James Paxton will be ready to go when the season starts. Jordan Montgomery is likely to get the fifth spot in the Yankees rotation which leaves King as the odd man out. The Yankees have a few options when it comes to King. They can keep him at AAA and continue to develop him or they could place him in the bullpen for the year. King’s fastball and command could make him a serious weapon out of the bullpen in 2020. I would like to see King develop those off-speed pitches a little more so he wasn’t so one dimensional when he pitches. I think King is due for a great bounce back season in 2020, I’m just curious to see what his role will be.