Yankees Could Target Former Pitcher After Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Megadeal

It was very well known that if the Toronto Blue Jays were not able to reach an agreement with superstar first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr, then both the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox were going to go all in on the Guerrero sweepstakes in the offseason.

Now, after Guerrero and the Blue Jays reportedly reached an agreement to keep the fan favorite in town for the next 14 years, the Yankees and Red Sox will have to continue pitching to him.

The Red Sox rotation is in a bit better shape than the Yankees’, and that is why Bleacher Reports’ Joseph Zucker has listed Padres right-hander Michael King as a potential trade target for New York.

King spent the first five seasons of his MLB career with the Yankees before being traded to the Padres in the blockbuster Juan Soto trade prior to the beginning of last season. King put together his best professional season with San Diego, finishing with a record of 13-9 and a 2.95 ERA across 30 starts.

The Padres, and AJ Preller more specifically, have shown their willingness to make a big move in the middle of the season. Now, in a division that could any moment be taken over by the Dodgers, Diamondbacks or Giants, San Diego could find itself on the outside looking in and needing to make a couple of trades to better the future of the team.

As for King’s fit with the Yankees, it would make a ton of sense. New York is without Gerrit Cole for the season and both Clarke Schmidt and Luis Gil have injury history. A move for King to shore up the rotation could be much needed, not only for the depth of the rotation, but also to help slow down the powerful lineups of the Red Sox, Blue Jays and Orioles.