From 2015 to 2017, Michael Fulmer’s meteoric rise up the professional baseball ranks signaled that he could one day be among Major League Baseball’s elites.
Fulmer was involved in a midseason trade that sent him from the New York Mets to the Detroit Tigers during that first year, but he managed to finish the season with a 10-3 record and 2.23 ERA across 125 innings pitched, almost all of which came at the Double-A level. In 2016, he was named the American League’s Rookie of the Year; in 2017, he made his first All-Star team.
But he hasn’t been the same electrifying starter since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2019, spending time as a serviceable reliever for the Tigers and Minnesota Twins before bouncing from team to team in recent seasons. That trend continued on Wednesday, when he joined his fourth franchise in 2025 alone.
Fulmer’s getting a fresh start in Seattle
The Seattle Mariners announced on Aug. 20 that they had signed Fulmer to a minor-league deal before assigning him to the Tacoma Rainiers, the organization’s Triple-A affiliate. He made his debut for the Rainiers on Wednesday, allowing one hit, striking out one batter and picking up a hold after pitching a scoreless sixth inning against the Oklahoma City Comets.
Prior to joining the Rainiers, Fulmer most recently played for the Omaha Storm Chasers, the Kansas City Royals’ Triple-A affiliate. He made 15 appearances out of the Storm Chasers’ bullpen, earning a 0-1 record, 5.89 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and 18 punchouts in 18.1 innings pitched.
In addition to his time in the Mariners’ and Royals’ organizations, Fulmer has played for both the Chicago Cubs’ and Boston Red Sox’s big-league squads and Triple-A affiliates (the Iowa Cubs and Worcester Red Sox, respectively) this season.
Fulmer is a career 37-50 pitcher with a 3.95 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, 578 strikeouts, 45 holds, and 19 saves across 679.2 innings of work in 265 MLB games.
