Detroit Tigers Have Pitching Depth in Michael Fulmer
Jordan Zimmermann gives the Detroit Tigers the front-line starter they were looking for, but the Tigers had already acquired pitching depth for their future when they traded for Michael Fulmer, et al.
The Detroit Tigers have landed the first major free agent signing of the offseason in Jordan Zimmermann, shoring up a pitching rotation that was one of the worst in the majors last season. The Tigers are reportedly still looking for a mid-level starter, but the rotation looks much better today than it did at the end of last season.
While the signing of Zimmermann is huge, part of the team’s optimistic outlook has to do with the pitching talent the Tigers acquired before 2015’s trade deadline. The Tigers sent away pitcher David Price and outfielder Yoenis Cespedes and received a bundle that included the now cancer-free Daniel Norris, Matt Boyd and Michael Fulmer.
Boyd and Norris will compete for rotation spots in 2016, but Fulmer will start the season in the minors. With Fulmer being at least half a season away, most likely more, the Tigers have needed depth in the pitching rotation both now and in the future—Justin Verlander is beginning to show signs of high mileage and Anibal Sanchez and Zimmermann are either at or on the back-nine of their primes. The Dave Dombrowski-era Tigers were not averse to pillaging the farm or writing large checks in pursuit of a World Series title, but now the Tigers have an improving cadre of young talent to bolster what is perennially one of the worst farm systems in the majors.
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Fulmer is likely a middle or back-of-the-rotation starter. He was drafted out of high school in 2011 and has shown promise ever since, finishing 2015 with a combined 2.24 earned run average and 4.17 strikeout-to-walk ratio, earning him Pitcher of the Year honors in the Eastern League. His career 3.18 ERA and 2.92 K/BB are the result of his fastball-slider-curveball combo, and a deeper look at the numbers show how effectively he is developing those pitches. Check out these stats over the past three seasons:
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Two things jump out; one is that Fulmer, who has a career .304 batting average on balls in play, endured dreadful luck on balls in play in 2014, which is likely the reason his ERA ballooned above 4.00; the other is that Fulmer has lowered his walk rate in each of the past two seasons, leading to an elevated strikeout-to-walk ratio.
It should also be noted that Fulmer was injured for much of 2013 and therefore was coming back from injury in 2014, which also could’ve contributed to his struggles. His healthy and dominant 2015 and improved control in 2014 despite injuries bode well for Fulmer. Other pitchers such as the Reds’ Robert Stephenson have struggled to throw strikes, but Fulmer seems to be addressing that issue.
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Even if there isn’t room for Fulmer in the rotation right away, he has the tools to be an effective reliever with a mid-90s fastball and two sharp breaking pitches. He, along with Luis Cessa, Spencer Turnbull, Kevin Ziomek and Austin Kubitza could form a decent back of the rotation/bullpen with the addition of a cheap yet shrewd free agent signing.
All stats from Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs.com