One start in after 3-month absence, King (knee) heads back to IL

Right-hander Michael King is going back on the injured list after just one start, a major blow to the Padres rotation ahead of perhaps San Diego’s biggest series of the season.

King, who was scheduled to start Friday’s series opener against the Dodgers in Los Angeles, was placed on the 15-day IL (retroactive to Monday) with left knee inflammation. The right-hander had just returned from a lengthy IL stint due to a thoracic nerve issue in his right shoulder, an injury that cost him nearly three months.

King was activated from the IL to face the Red Sox on Aug. 9, pitching two innings and allowing four hits and two runs with one strikeout. He threw 57 pitches in his first Major League outing since May 18. In 11 starts this season, King has a 2.81 ERA with 65 strikeouts in 57 1/3 innings.

It’s unclear when the right-hander’s knee issue cropped up, but it’s evidently bad enough to cost him at least two starts for a surging Padres team. San Diego is 9-3 in August, is currently on a five-game winning streak and holds a one-game lead over the Dodgers for first place in the National League West.

King was slated to open this weekend’s pivotal three-game series on the mound for the Padres, but they’ll now have to turn elsewhere. Right-hander Randy Vásquez, who was recalled from Triple-A El Paso in a corresponding move, could draw the start in King’s place. Alternatively, the Padres could start righty Dylan Cease (Saturday’s scheduled starter) on regular rest or make Friday’s contest a bullpen game.