The Cubs have designated right-hander Michael Fulmer for assignment, per a team announcement. That move will clear space on the active roster for the reinstatement of lefty Shota Imanaga, who’ll return from the injured list to start today’s game.
Fulmer only joined the big league club last week. He’d been pitching well with Chicago’s Triple-A affiliate in Iowa, working to a 2.96 ERA with a 32% strikeout rate and 11% walk rate in 24 1/3 innings. His two appearances with the Cubs were strong. He totaled three innings and held opponents scoreless on just two hits and no walks with one strikeout.
This is the second DFA of the season for Fulmer, the 2016 American League Rookie of the Year winner with the Tigers. He opened the season as a member of the Red Sox, having signed a two-year minor league deal in the 2023-24 offseason as he rehabbed from Tommy John surgery. He made just one big league appearance with the Sox, allowing three runs in 2 2/3 innings, before being designated there as well.
Now 32 years old, Fulmer broke into the majors with 26 starts and 159 innings of 3.06 ERA ball for the ’16 Tigers, claiming Rookie of the Year honors in the process. He was a key member of Detroit’s rotation for the next couple seasons before injuries intervened. In addition to Tommy John surgery, Fulmer has also undergone an ulnar nerve transposition procedure in his right arm as well as surgery to repair a meniscus tear in his knee. Detroit moved him to the ’pen early in 2021, and he went on to pitch quite well as a closer and setup man between the Tigers, Twins and Cubs over the next two-plus seasons.
While he’s not the high-end starting pitcher he was early in his career or even the hard-throwing, high-leverage reliever he was from 2021-23, Fulmer has generally looked solid in his first full season back from that UCL replacement. He’s pitched 36 innings of 3.00 ERA ball in Triple-A, averaging 92.7 mph on his heater there — he sat 94.3 mph in his two major league outings with Chicago — and pitched well in his latest MLB look.
The Cubs will have up to five days to explore trades before Fulmer must be placed on waivers to ensure that his DFA is resolved within the one-week maximum. (Waivers take 48 hours to process.) He can be waived at any time prior, of course. If Fulmer passes through waivers unclaimed, he’ll have the right to reject an outright assignment to a minor league affiliate with the Cubs and instead explore opportunities with the league’s 29 other teams.
He’s probably done at 32, but he lasted longer than most guys.
He’s not done. The Cubs only released him because of a roster crunch. They only have 3 pitchers with options who are all pitching well. They had to make a move to activate Imanaga. Article also has him back pitching for the Tigers (I know its a mistake), saying they have 5 days to trade him.
What Blue Baron was trying to say is that Fullmur will probably continue to kick around multiple teams hoping to catch on but as far as regaining his earlier potentila….”he’s done”…nobody given his recent injury part with a fastball at sub 93 is going to give him anything more than a short term look….
Well the Cubs didn’t want to release him. I suppose there is a slim chance he makes it through waivers and the Cubs sign him back to Iowa. As many teams that need arms though I’m quite sure someone will sign him. Why not? He ‘s been pitching well for the Cubs, Hottovy seems to know how to fix him. The only reason he left in the first place was because he had another TJ surgery.
There is a zero percent chance that Fulmer would prefer to pitch in Iowa instead of with an MLB club.
This is his second DFA of the season. If he clears waivers, that means no other team is interested in rostering him, even at the prorated league minimum.
What Fulmer would prefer doesn’t enter into the equation. Either some other team claims him and he heads there, or nobody claims him and he either stays with the Cubs in Iowa or goes to the AAA team of another organization.
Why would you think his career is done when he has been pitching well this year? Could honestly see a Detroit reunion as they retool their bullpen.
If he’s pitching well, he might help a number of teams.
5…4…3…2…1
Dodgers claim Fulmer
He has shown enough. I can see the Mets or many other clubs giving him a shot.
@Dewey – Maybe Gage for the Mets as they need LH help.
Mets keep cycling through pitchers like the Dodgers. 34 to 30 lead for Dodgers).
“The Tigers will have up to five days to explore trades before Fulmer must be placed on waivers”
lol.. I caught that too
I’d bet the Tigers pitching staff could help him in his recovery but I don’t know if he’d want that or if the Tigers would want to use a 40 man slot for him. He’s unlikely to get that far without getting claimed by someone anyway.
Jed Hoyer waiting for Scott Harris to tell him what to do
Hey Steve, fix this.mistake please. Youre better than that!
* you’re
Cubs would love to hang on to him and stash him in AAA as bullpen depth, if he goes unclaimed and is willing to accept an assignment. I feel like he’ll latch on somewhere, though.
I’d give him another shot in Detroit in the pen or as a closer.
I don’t think he’d be better than Vest or Kahnle, but I do think Fulmer could be a big help to the Tigers pen – go for it, Harris!
If you’re the Phillies, do you take a chance on Fulmer as a bullpen arm?
@ ctbronx – I don’t think that I would have a problem designating Alan Rangel off of the active and 40 man roster to give Fulmer a good look, but I also have not seen Fulmer throw this year. Clearly the Phils are looking for depth arms that might have some upside but current scouting information would be helpful..
I think you’ll get near unanimous agreement on your assessment of Rangel from Braves fans Carver.
I think the Cubs will be able to work out a trade here… there are a ton of bullpen-needy teams right now. The return won’t be much but they’ll probably get a low-level prospect rather than just cash considerations.
Where’s the kimbrel uproar? Almost exactly the same thing, yet the cubs didnt shaft fulmer?
Numbers crunch. I’m not sure who I’d have cut instead, maybe Flexen? Brasier? But it’s a bummer, because he seemed sharp in two appearances and he gives hitters a different look. He will very likely be claimed by some team.
I was racking my brain trying to figure it out. The only 2 with options were Hodge and Palencia and they just activated Hodge so that would have been curious at best. Somebody had to go. Pressly makes too much to just cut and while he still makes me nervous every time he pitches, He’s doing well enough to keep him so……….Last guy up is out I guess. When somebody gets hurt it will happen again so it won’t be the last time.
Was the salary nothing more. Fulmer is the better of the two if he’s healthy. Pressly is washed. What about a crosstown trade? Fulmer and a prospect for Civale or Houser?
AA should be on the phone
Yep. I thought it, you said it.
Hopefully he knew ahead of time that his signing was short term. Get him a few innings and showcase him. He’ll probably be traded for cash considerations once he clears waivers.
Mets pick him (Fulmer) up, could use him in the BP
Mets need to bring him home,if right he was a Mets prospect to the Tigers. We need pitching bad
I get a kick out of the people who, whenever any player of any stature becomes available for any reason, immediately post “The Dodgers are going to sign him!” I wonder what life is like for people like that.
Welcome back to the angels
I’m surprised no one has mentioned what a wasteful rehab signing this was by the Red Sox. This is a practice that has to stop. The Sox need to realize that the two-year contract for a rehabbing TJS pitcher is a loser at both ends of the contract. First, in year one, because the pitcher is convalescing. Second, in year two, allegedly the bargain year because this is the down year of the return to pitching, in which the pitcher is leery enough of the new joint to be tentative in his work. Without seeing any aggregate numbers, I cannot imagine the stats flatter Year 2 TJS returnees.
Dbacks could pick him up, but with our recent luck he would probably tear his UCL signing the contract…
Send Fulmer to the White Sox with a prospect for Houser. White Sox can flip Fulmer off to someone else near to the deadline. End up with a two for one.
There are bigger fish out there than houser. Besides, he’s hardly a 1 or 2 they really need and will end up paying a bigger price to get
This is the same guy that any team could have had for nothing a couple months ago. Nice for him that he seems to be pitching well, but quit believing he’s a savior for anyone. Be happy for him that he may be getting a sold career back.
Guess what….the same thing is going to happen to Reese McGuire in a handful of weeks when Amaya comes back. He’s done well while here, but it’s the nature of the business. High percentage chance he finishes the season with a different team.
Mets need to right the wrong and claim Fulmer. He’d be our third best reliever automatically with how bad our bullpen is
Mets?
The Mets are going to lose Griffin Canning for an extended period. They may be willing to give up an A-ball kid to bypass the line on the waiver wire.
Astros-cubs tonight! Just imagine that the cubbies not only lose Tucker at end of year but have lost cam smith as right fielder to be not excluding alcantara or caissie in the outfield but not with cubbies. Yep, cubs and hoyer soon to be holding empty bag after losing tuck.
The cool part about the Cubs being in first place right now? I don’t have to imagine.
I am still waiting for Tucker to get a game-changing hit. He is a good player, but not the “tranformative” one he was billed as.
Reds maybe?
For Houston tonight parades hitting 2nd and cam smith batting cleanup as right fielder while Swanson batting cleanup for us. Go figure who gas better lineup with the trade.
If cam smith were still with cubs he’d be blocked for two or three years additional years for development like caissie and alcantara and as a matter of fact may never see majors. Tucker is good excuse for hoyer until now but they had better sign him.
I have long ago given up on ever seeing Caissie or Alcantara contribute meaningfully for the Cubs. Hoyer keeps the 4-A guys forever, gives away the genuine prospects.
The Cubs were smart enough, drafting 14th, to get the best player in the 2024 draft–a true unicorn who became a star in the majors THE NEXT SEASON–and then dumb enough to trade him for an overrated prima donna. In the future, this will be remembered as being as bad as Brock-for-Broglio.
I see the brewers and cardinals now making plays to strengthen their teams now that they feel they have good shot and the cubs coming up short despite Tucker