Michael King made his playoff debut with the New York Yankees during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season at a mostly empty Petco Park, where the only “fans” were cardboard cutouts.
He pitched for two innings in a loss during Game 3 of the Division Series, which Tampa Bay won in five games.
Now, King is set to experience a lively playoff atmosphere on Tuesday night when he starts for the Padres at a sold-out Petco Park in the first game of a best-of-three Wild Card Series against Atlanta.
The Braves secured their playoff spot by winning the second game of a doubleheader against the New York Mets on Monday.
“I can’t wait to see this place in the playoffs,” King said. “Obviously, I did see it in the playoffs, but nobody was in the crowd and nobody wanted either the Yankees or the Rays to win. But the fans here are absolutely nuts and I am very excited to see what we can bring.”
The Padres attracted a club-record 3,314,593 fans to the downtown ballpark, with 56 sellouts in 80 games (they gave up a home game to play a two-game opening series in Seoul, South Korea, against the Los Angeles Dodgers).
King (13-9, 2.95 ERA) joined the Padres in a major trade that sent Juan Soto to the Yankees on December 7.
He is one of several new players who have changed the team’s vibe from the 2023 season, which had the third-highest opening day payroll in baseball but ended up being the most disappointing season in club history.
This marks the Padres’ return to the playoffs for the first time since their exciting run to the NL Championship Series in 2022, which included eliminating the 111-win Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS on a rainy Saturday night when the downtown ballpark felt like it was shaking.
“I’ve heard about that 2022 run and what they did, and I think that’s incredibly uncomfortable for an opposing team to come into,” King said. “It’s a lot to come into that atmosphere.
And knowing that they’re going to be even louder and probably even more somehow, it’s going to be a very tough time for our opponent and something that we’re going to have to feed off of.
“I can’t wait to turn up my PitchCom and make sure I can hear everything. But it’ll be a very fun time tomorrow.”
Mike Shildt, in his first year as manager of the Padres, said Joe Musgrove will start on Wednesday night and Dylan Cease will start if a Game 3 is needed on Thursday night. Yu Darvish will be on the playoff roster but will work out of the bullpen.
Shildt took over for Bob Melvin, who reportedly had issues with general manager A.J. Preller and left for NL West rival San Francisco last October.
The Padres have been strong since the All-Star break, securing their third playoff spot since 2020.
Slugger Manny Machado has bounced back from a slow start after offseason elbow surgery. Fernando Tatis Jr. has returned with his confident play after missing two months due to injury. Center fielder Jackson Merrill is making a strong case for NL Rookie of the Year.
Luis Arraez, acquired from Miami in early May, hit .314 to become the first player since the 1800s to win three batting titles with three different teams. General manager A.J. Preller strengthened the rotation and bullpen at the trade deadline.
“Honestly, it’s just a great group of guys,” Machado said. “We’re just united, we’re all pulling for each other. It’s one big family in there.”
