Maligned White Sox prospect Carson Fulmer ground out an admirable 2018-debut on Wednesday. Fulmer has been the target of many criticisms from around the league and media given his capricious results in the majors. Several accounts have called for Fulmer to be dispatched to the bullpen, but there are plenty of reasons why the once-heralded prospect doesn’t fit that role either.
Don Cooper offered a strong defense of his hurler to the media recently (as reported by James Fegan of The Athletic):
“I’m going to go back on Carson, when he first came to the big league, we put him in the bullpen out of Triple-A. … He had a couple of good outings and a couple of lemons. But everybody was writing Carson Fulmer off. Can he do this, can’t do this, can’t do that. All of that negative crap.
Then he had a start against Minnesota and couldn’t get out of the first. Oh, Carson can’t do this and can’t do that. He sucks. After one freaking outing. Come on. That’s not even fair to anybody.
Then he got off and had some really good starts for us. So again looking to pick up where we left off with him. But to write a guy off after a couple, you gotta have a little patience. I’m not patient for a lot of things in life but with pitching I find myself more patient because it doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a process.”
Rick Hahn had this to say about the club’s patience with Fulmer’s development:
“Coop and Ricky really fought for this kid and wanted to make sure he got this opportunity going forward. … Obviously ability is going to be the most important element but guys who have that special fight or commitment or understanding of themselves or openness to new ideas and instruction are at an advantage as things unfold, especially once the inevitable struggles arrive.
It is no surprise that Cooper and Renteria support Fulmer. Afterall, you don’t draft relievers with the eighth-overall pick in the draft. Hahn has admitted that Fulmer is the benefactor of rebuilding phase and probably has more leash than most players would get on a competitive team, but it’s very simple why Fulmer hasn’t been sent to the bullpen.
Fulmer is not a reliever
Fulmer doesn’t have an escape pitch. There is nothing about the right-hander’s stuff that screams bullpen material. Andrew Miller failed as a starter and he was drafted with the sixth pick in 2006, but he featured a wipeout slider – unmatched in the game – with a high-90s fastball and an awkward delivery on a gangly frame.
In no universe is Fulmer a closer. His cutter doesn’t cut enough, and his fastball isn’t quick enough. If he can refocus his mechanics and drop a hammer to pair with his squirrelly two-seamer he could become a setup-man or an option in long-relief.
Besides the absence of stuff, Fulmer still hasn’t figured out how to command his pitches. There were glints of polish in Wednesday’s start but he ran a lot of deep counts and his success was more a function of Toronto’s poor offensive approach than his prowess on the mound.
There is still time for Fulmer to figure it out and the White Sox are taking the right approach with him. He should be able to settle in the next few months without real concern of being unseated as the fifth starter. If he can string together a few good outings the way he did at the end of last season, he may stick in the rotation once Rodon rejoins the staff. But if the wheels come off, his status as a starter could grind to a screeching halt.
What’s Gotten into the Pen?
No one should be surprised by the White Sox bullpen woes. After gutting the entire pen last season with trades, the patchwork leftover has been culled from the bargain bin. The first two games against the Blue Jays were a disaster punctuated by Hector Santiago and Gregory Infante allowing seven runs in 2/3 of an inning in the eighth. The night before, the trio of Luis Avilan, Danny Farquhar and Aaron Bummer squandered a gem by Reynaldo Lopez, allowing five runs in three innings.
Leading into last night’s game, the bullpen equaled the starting rotation in runs allowed with 14, reaching that feat in half the time – 11 innings. The bullpen had a 10.64 earned run average before yesterday’s game and while they were able to hold onto a one-run lead after Jose Abreu’s eighth-inning blast, it was an uneasy situation for everyone.
This is going to be a season-long struggle for the bullpen. Avilan and Joakim Soria are battle tested and should provide stability to the unit along with Nate Jones. But if the others can’t soak up innings without coughing up leads the last few frames are going to be painful.
