The San Diego Padres are off to a blistering start this season. The team is just 1.5 games behind the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West and the Padres closed out April with a 19-11 record, tying the franchise-best mark for wins before May.

While the Padres have produced offensively in 2025, the team’s starting pitching has elevated the club to an elite level. Although Michael King’s future with the Padres is up in the air, he’s helping to turn the team into a contender.

King has enjoyed even more success in his second season with the Padres and MLB Network’s Al Leiter believes a tweak to his delivery is responsible. Leiter broke down how a drop in arm angle this year has allowed King to get more horizontal run on his pitches, making his electric arsenal even more of a nightmare for batters.

“When you have late movement, hitters… have to make a decision. The first 20 feet is, ‘What is the pitch?’ The next 20 feet is, ‘Is it a ball or a strike?’ and the last 20 feet is, ‘Do I swing?’ Leiter explained per MLB Network on X.

Padres’ pitcher Michael King is improving on his 2024 breakout season

Apr 13, 2025; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres starting pitcher Michael King (34) throws a pitch during the sixth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Petco Park.
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“He’s throwing a lot of strikes, quality on both sides of the plate. But he’s dropped. As a result, that gives you more horizontal [run]. Horizontal two-seam in on the righty or away on the lefty. And then, because he’s so low, that sweeper breaking ball gets a lot more horizontal then to the left-hander away from the righty… It’s nasty,” Leiter noted via MLB Network.

“Anybody who has a good breaking ball or good sinker, you throw off a firm front side and you stay closed. It’s paramount. Guys that open up, you’re not going to have as good a breaking ball because you’re not throwing off a firm front side,” Leiter added.

The Padres acquired King from the New York Yankees in the blockbuster Juan Soto trade prior to the 2024 season. San Diego converted the veteran reliever into a starting pitcher and the results were sensational. Last year King went 13-9 with a 2.95 ERA, 1.192 WHIP and 201 strikeouts in 173.2 innings. He had a 138 ERA+ and finished seventh in NL Cy Young voting.

This offseason the Padres signed King to a one-year extension with a mutual option for 2026. In seven starts so far this season, he’s 4-1 with a 2.09 ERA, 1.009 WHIP and 10.7 K/9. He has a 195 ERA+ and is already up to 1.2 bWAR after 38.2 innings pitched.