The New York Yankees starting rotation took another hit when Domingo German was placed on administrative leave for a domestic violence investigation. As a result, the Yankees signed Michael King to a major league contract. King, the Yankees 19th-best prospect, will be on the MLB roster for the final week of the regular season.
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Profile
King is a six-foot-three-inch right-handed pitcher. He was born in Rochester, NY, and he played baseball at Boston College. In his time with Boston College, King can stake claim to being the only pitcher to win a Super-Regional game in the NCAA tournament in program history.
King was drafted in the 12th round of the 2016 draft by the Miami Marlins. The Yankees acquired him as part of the return that sent Garrett Cooper and Caleb Smith to Miami in 2017.
In three seasons in MiLB, King has played for eight different teams ranging from Low-A to Triple-A. 2019 brought a stress reaction , and King only pitched in 11 games as a result.
In those games, King compiled a 3-2 record with a 5.48 ERA in 46 inning pitched, and he struck out 44 batters with a 1.24 WHIP. He only allowed a .264 opponent batting average, and his ground out/air out ratio was 1.67.
In 2018, he showed flashes of what he is capable of. He finished second in MiLB with a 1.79 ERA and third with 0.91 WHIP while progressing from High-A to Triple-A. King’s stock rose that year and he was named the organization’s 2018 Minor League Pitcher of the Year.
Scouting Report
Michael King grades out as a pitcher with plus control. Out of a possible 80, he grades out with a 60 for the control of his pitches. His success comes on the command of his two-seam fastball, that ranges from 92-95 MPH also with a 60/80 grade.
The fastball can run or sink on either side of the plate. As a result, he generates a high percentage of ground balls. This is evident by his 1.7 ratio of ground outs to outs in the air in his three MiLB seasons.
King also throws a slider and a changeup which can be quality pitches when they are working well. His slider grades out slightly better than his changeup with a grade of 55/80 vs. 50/80. Both of these pitches have improved since he moved from the Marlins system to the Yankees system. Since being traded, his K/9 has risen from 6.3 to as high as 8.5 after his first year with the Yankees.
While certain Yankee prospects such as Deivi Garcia or Luis Gil are getting attention for their tremendous upside, it is King who possesses the highest floor among pitching prospects. Additionally, King has the best command of any pitching prospect.
When King was traded, he was felt to be a potential back-of-the-rotation pitcher. Since then, his development as shown his ceiling is even higher. Unfortunately, he is ineligible for the postseason because he was not on the 25-man roster by September 1st, therefore, he will not see too much time this season. For now, it will be fun to see what he can do in a limited time as he prepares for a future in New York.
Main Photo: Embed from Getty Images
