Detroit Tigers: Worrying about Michael Fulmer’s decreased velocity

No one in 2019 is expecting much out of the Detroit Tigers. Even MLB is predicting that the former AL Central powerhouse will be at the bottom of the division.

No one expected that the Detroit Tigers 2016 AL Rookie of the Year could have another year of struggles. Sadly, after a rough Spring Training outing against the Atlanta Braves, Michael Fulmer still doesn’t look quite like himself.

When the Tigers acquired Fulmer in the Yoenis Cespedes trade, it appeared that the Tigers got the better deal. Now, it seems as if Fulmer and Cespedes are both suffering from the same problem – too many lingering injuries.

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Over the 2017 and 2018 seasons, the young pitcher has suffered from several injuries including an oblique strain, elbow neuritis, a meniscus tear, and numbness in his pitching hand.

Fulmer will be 26 on March 15, but he’s already having struggles that pitchers who are closer to 30 often have. In his rookie season, where he pitched a closely watched 159 innings, he had an ERA of 3.06.

Since then, his ERA numbers have increased to 3.83 and 4.69 in ’17 and ’18 respectively. He pitched 132.1 innings in 2018 and struck out 110 batters. In ’17, he struck out 114 batters in 164.2 innings. His WHIP has increased and his ERA+ has decreased since 2016, too.

And, during Spring Training, he has an ERA of 9.00 in five innings in three starts. Of the 25 batters he’s faced, he’s walked three and struck out three. This is not typical of Michael Fulmer.

Or is it, now?

According to Anthony Fenech with the Detroit Free Press, in the latest outing against the Braves, Fulmer only reached velocities between 88 and 92 MPH. These are down from the typical 95-97 MPH fastballs that earned him the ROY in 2016 and an All-Star Game invite in 2017. He reported that a scout at the game noticed that “Fulmer didn’t look right.”

This could be troublesome for the Detroit Tigers who are hoping to get something valuable out of the right-handed pitcher. When he first joined the Tigers at the July trade deadline in 2015, the hopes were that he would take eventually become the ace in place of Justin Verlander.

After his 2016 season, those hopes grew. But, in his last two seasons, it was tough to get consistent outings from him. And, without that, his trade value will drop. As it stands, the Detroit Tigers have very few veteran trade chips available aside from Fulmer and Nick Castellanos. The Tigers need him to be effective.

If he can’t recover his velocity, he’s going to need to figure out another way to be effective. He might have to look at what older pitchers like Verlander or Zack Greinke have done after their fastballs lost effectiveness. Fulmer might have to rely on a secondary pitch or add some late movement to get back to his rookie form.

Injuries seem to be one of the Tigers’ biggest problems when it comes to its pitching rotation. Jordan Zimmermann and Daniel Norris seem to be constantly struggling with injuries that take them out for months at a time.

Zimm seems to be pitching well and free of pain so far in Spring Training as his 2.00 ERA in nine innings of work clearly show. Norris hasn’t been quite as good and was lit up by the Yankees in his past two outings.

If Fulmer wants to stay relevant, he needs to figure out how to stay on the mound.

Fortunately, the Tigers do have plenty of young pitchers who will be making their debuts in the next season or two. Until then, the veterans need to be able to get the job done.