Yankees' Michael King: Racks up career-best 13 punchouts
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King (4-7) took the loss against Toronto on Wednesday, allowing one run on five hits and no walks while striking out 13 batters over seven innings.
Though he was tagged with the loss due to a stagnant New York offense, King pitched arguably his best game as a major leaguer, tallying a career-best strikeout total and racking up 16 whiffs over seven frames. The only run he allowed came when Bo Bichette reached on a two-out infield single to knock in Kevin Kiermaier in the third inning. King has been a strikeout machine over his past three outings, posting a 30:2 K:BB along with a 1.62 ERA and 1.02 WHIP over 16.2 innings. It would be an understatement to say that his late-season transition to the rotation has gone well, and King could be setting himself up for a full-time role as a starter in 2024 with his recent outstanding run.
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Yankees' Michael King: Takes loss in matinee
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King (4-6) took the loss in Game 1 of Thursday's doubleheader against Boston, allowing one run on six hits and one walk while striking out eight batters over 4.2 innings.
Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake said earlier in the day that King had built up to 85-to-90 pitches, and the right-hander was right on target with 87 pitches (56 strikes). He appeared to be getting stronger as the game wore on, striking out the final three batters he faced and not allowing a run after the first frame, which bodes well for his ability to continue going deeper into contests. Nonetheless, King got no run support from the Yankees offense Thursday and ended up with his first loss since Aug. 12. It looks like he'll be a fixture in the rotation moving forward, and he's shined in that role of late, allowing just three earned runs while posting a 29:4 K:BB over his past 21.1 innings.
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Yankees' Michael King: Ready for heavier workload
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Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake said that King is built up for 85-to-90 pitches in Thursday's start versus the Red Sox, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic reports.
King reached 79 pitches his last time out against the Brewers, when he fanned nine over five innings while yielding just one earned run. The right-hander has been excellent since moving into the Yankees' rotation, collecting a 1.08 ERA and 21:3 K:BB over 16.2 frames. He's making a case to be one of the team's five starters heading into next season.
King did not factor into the decision Saturday, allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits and one walk over five innings against the Brewers while striking out nine.
King looked sharp against the Brewers, striking out four of the first seven batters he faced to open the contest. Two runs came across for Milwaukee in the top of the fourth, though only one was charged to King following a throwing error by DJ LeMahieu. The right-hander has now gone five innings in back-to-back starts, allowing a total of two earned runs over that stretch while posting a 13:1 K:BB.
King (4-5) allowed a run on five hits and struck out four without walking a batter over five innings to earn the win over the Astros on Sunday.
King enjoyed his longest outing of the season, getting through five frames on an economical 69 pitches (44 strikes). That's a further build-up from the 61 pitches he threw over four scoreless innings Tuesday versus Detroit. The right-hander is now at a 2.88 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 91:25 K:BB through 78 innings over 44 appearances (four starts) this year. He appears to be set to remain a starter for the rest of 2023, but he'll likely still have to be efficient to have much of a chance to get wins. King is projected for a home outing versus Milwaukee in his next trip to the mound.
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Yankees' Michael King: Set for another start Sunday
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King is lined up to receive another start Sunday at Houston, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic reports.
King built his pitch count up to 61 in his most recent start Tuesday versus the Tigers while striking out five batters over four scoreless innings. Jhony Brito will likely be available in bulk relief Sunday against the Astros, but King is perhaps making a case to be treated as more of a traditional starter rather than just an opening pitcher. The 28-year-old right-hander boasts an overall 2.96 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 87:25 K:BB in 73 innings this season for the Yankees.
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Yankees' Michael King: Four scoreless innings
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King did not factor into the decision Tuesday, allowing three hits over four scoreless innings in a 4-2 win over the Tigers. He struck out five and did not issue a walk.
King set down the first six Tigers and surrendered just three singles across his four innings in his role as an opener of sorts. Across his two starts (against Washington and Detroit), the 28-year-old has gone a combined 6.2 innings allowing only four hits and one unearned run while striking out eight and walking two. It appears likely that the Yankees will continue to deploy him in a similar fashion with Jhony Brito following him in a bulk-relief role. If King does draw another start, it would likely occur over the weekend in Houston.
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Yankees' Michael King: Draws another starting assignment
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King is slated to start Tuesday's game against the Tigers at Comerica Park, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.
While making his second "start" of the season his last time out Thursday versus the Nationals, King operated as more of an opener in front of Jhony Brito. King covered 2.2 innings, allowing one unearned run on one hit and two walks while striking out three. The Yankees could have King work a little deeper into his start Tuesday, though the right-hander is still unlikely to hit the five innings he would need to qualify for a win. Unless Brito is needed in relief in Monday's series opener, he could once again following King in Tuesday's contest.
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Yankees' Michael King: Strikes out three as opener
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King did not factor into the decision Thursday, allowing one unearned run on one hit and two walks over 2.2 innings against the Nationals while striking out three.
King pitched well over the first two innings but found himself in a jam in the third after walking two of the first four batters he faced in the frame. One unearned run came home following a fielding error by Anthony Volpe and the right-hander was then relieved by Keynan Middleton as New York went with a bullpen day. The Yankees have now lost the last four games in which King has appeared, though he's held his own so far in August with a 3.00 ERA and 20:5 K:BB.
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Yankees' Michael King: Opening Thursday's game
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King will serve as the Yankees' opening pitcher for Thursday's game against Washington, Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News reports.
King allowed two runs in two innings during his last outing as an opener on Aug. 12 against Miami. He'll presumably stay in Thursday's contest for 2-to-3 innings before turning the game over to the bullpen, with Jhony Brito being the most likely candidate to work in bulk relief.
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Yankees' Michael King: Allows two runs in opening role
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King (3-5) took the loss Saturday, allowing two runs on four hits over two innings against the Marlins. He struck out three.
King got off to a rough start, giving up a leadoff single to Jazz Chisholm on the very first pitch of the game before surrendering a two-run blast to Luis Arraez just two batters later. The right-hander rebounded with a 1-2-3 inning in the second before being relieved Jhony Brito to open the third, but the former would still go on to be charged with his fifth loss of the season. King had not allowed a run over his last seven appearances coming in (spanning eight innings), while the four hits he surrendered Saturday matched his season high.
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Yankees' Michael King: Listed as starter
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King is listed as the the Yankees' starting pitcher for Saturday's game against Miami, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic reports.
Like many major-league relievers, King was a starter in the minors and at the beginning of his MLB career, so being the first pitcher on the mound won't be an entirely new experience. He'll likely be more of an opener than a true starter Saturday, though he did record eight outs in his most recent relief appearance Tuesday against the White Sox and has thrown at least two full innings in 14 of his 38 outings this season. Jhony Brito was recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Friday and could handle the bulk role behind King, though the Yankees have yet to lay out their plans.
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Yankees' Michael King: Nabs sixth save
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King picked up the save Saturday against the Cubs. striking out one over 1.2 scoreless innings.
King took over for Gerrit Cole with one out in the top of the eighth and needed just five pitches to retire the next two batters and end the inning. He would later hit Christopher Morel with a pitch in the ninth, but the right-hander was solid outside of that one hiccup en route to earning his sixth save of the season. King has now converted three of his last four save attempts and lowered his season ERA to 2.77 with Saturday's scoreless outing.
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Yankees' Michael King: Secures win in Game 2
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King (2-4) allowed a hit and struck out two without walking a batter over 3.1 innings of relief to earn the win in Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader versus the Cardinals.
King covered the most innings of the six pitchers the Yankees deployed in a bullpen game. He's no stranger to longer relief outings -- he's gone past an inning in 20 of his 27 appearances on the year, though Saturday's effort was his longest of the season. King now has a 2.84 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 48:14 K:BB through 44.1 innings overall while adding five saves and three holds. He remains in the mix for some high-leverage work, but his ability to go multiple innings makes him a versatile part of the New York bullpen.
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Yankees' Michael King: Secures fifth save Sunday
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King picked up the save in Sunday's 5-3 victory over the Rangers, allowing one hit over a scoreless inning. He struck out two and didn't record a walk.
With Clay Holmes and Wandy Peralta presumably unavailable after working the previous day, Ron Marinaccio got the call in the eighth with New York trailing and King earned a save opportunity after the Yankees took the lead in the bottom of the eighth. It was King's fifth save of the year but his first save opportunity since June 13. It had been a struggle for King since then, as he allowed five runs over his previous three appearances. Despite his scoreless inning Sunday, King likely won't get many more save chances moving forward as long as Holmes, Peralta and Marinaccio are all healthy.
