Manager Mike Shildt said Friday that Yu Darvish will start in Game 2 of the NLDS against the Dodgers and King will come in "soon thereafter," Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.
The Padres will roll with Dylan Cease and Darvish for Games 1 and 2 of the NLDS before likely turning to King for Game 3. King started in Game 1 of the wild-card series against Atlanta on Tuesday, and he was credited for the win after pitching seven scoreless innings while allowing five hits and striking out 12 batters. The Padres' rotation suffered a setback with Joe Musgrove being ruled out for the NLDS due to a UCL injury in his right elbow, which will require Tommy John surgery during the offseason.
King will start Game 1 of the wild-card series against Atlanta on Tuesday, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.
The Padres will ride the hot hand and deploy King in their first postseason action, as he posted a 2.11 ERA and 1.25 WHIP with 40 strikeouts in his last seven starts of the regular season (38.1 innings). Joe Musgrove will get the call in Game 2 and Dylan Cease would draw the start in Game 3 if necessary.
King (13-9) got the win over the Dodgers on Tuesday, allowing one run (zero earned) on three hits and two walks while striking out three over five innings.
The Dodgers made King work hard to get through five innings and he was done after 95 pitches. King is on a miraculous run of allowing three runs or fewer in each of his last 14 starts and now sits at a 2.95 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 201:63 K:BB in 173.2 innings. He's tentatively lined up to make a start this weekend against the Diamondbacks but it's also possible the Padres skip him in order to save him up for the postseason.
Padres' Michael King: Seven strong innings against Astros
Rotowire
King did not factor into the decision in Tuesday's loss to the Astros, allowing two runs on five hits and a walk while striking out seven in seven innings.
The Astros got to King with four hits and a pair of runs in the fourth but were otherwise held in check. King reached seven innings for the first time since July 21 and has allowed two earned runs or fewer in each of his last seven starts. For the year, King owns a 3.04 ERA, which ranks eighth among qualifiers and fourth in the National League. He'll look to continue rolling in a crucial matchup against the Dodgers next week.
