An MMO Fan Shot by Jim Maggiore
Right-handed starting pitcher Michael Fulmer spent a half hour chatting and answering questions with the Binghamton Mets Booster Club on Thursday afternoon, May 14th before the Mets took on the New Hampshire Fisher Cats in a 6:35 pm contest. Fulmer was a supplemental first-round pick of the Mets in the 2011 draft, and entering the 2015 season Baseball America ranked him as the 14th best prospect in the Mets’ organization.
He was the second overall pick of the Mets in the draft, as the Mets used their first pick in the 13th slot to select teammate Brandon Nimmo. Fulmer was one the third Oklahoma pitcher taken in that year’s draft, as Archie Bradley was drafted in the 7th slot by the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Baltimore Orioles selected Dylan Bundy with the fourth overall pick.
Ironically, both Brandon Nimmo and Michael Fulmer had signed letters of intent to play baseball for the University of Arkansas after their graduation from high school in 2011. Both, however, wound up signing with the New York Mets instead. When Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn called Fulmer to wish him luck after he signed with the Mets, he told him “Congratulations on being signed, but right now as you can understand, I am not a big fan of the Mets.”
In the 2012 draft, the Mets showed their ongoing respect for the Arkansas program by drafting two of their players in the second round, infielder Matt Reynolds and pitcher Ted Stankiewicz. Paul DePodesta, the vice president of player development for the Mets, praised the work of Van Horn and his staff that year as he told Ethan Asofsky of MLB.COM:
“We love their players. We think they’ve done a great job with their program. Obviously we drafted a couple of their big recruits last year.”
In his spare time Fulmer likes to bowl, fish, golf, and hunt. While training and playing in St. Lucie he has been able to fill his free time with these hobbies so he does not refer to the Florida village as “Port St. Lonely,” an affectionate sobriquet for the town that sits on Florida’s East Coast, seemingly in the middle of nowhere. Fulmer does not have to stray far from St. Lucie’s Tradition Field to fulfill his hobbies.
Duffy’s, a large restaurant within walking distance of the stadium, has over 40 bowling lanes and is Fulmer’s favorite bowling spot. A creek beyond the right field fence at Tradition Field also serves as s convenient fishing spot for Fulmer and his teammates. When St. Lucie first opened in 1988 that creek was known to be an abode for alligators, but Fulmer says he has not seen any alligators in his time in St. Lucie.
Fulmer has battled a series of nagging injuries in his career thus far, but is hopeful the injury bug is behind him. In 2013 a torn meniscus limited him to nine starts for the season and he has never started more than 21 games in a season.
Two of his teammates from Deer Creek High School are also currently honing their craft in the minors, including infielder and designated hitter Brian Anderson, who is currently playing for the Jupiter Hammerheads, and righty pitcher Cale Coshow, who toils for the Charleston River Dogs.
“Everyone who plays this game in high school dreams of getting signed to play professional ball and all professional players dream of getting to the big leagues,” Fulmer explained as he discussed his career.
“I’m no different, I’m aware of the many guys who have played in Binghamton and gone on to play for the Mets, so I’m just happy to be here to compete and pursue my dream of getting to the big leagues.”
Fulmer went on to state that the success of those who have gone before him provide motivation to work hard and not slack off.
“You’re aware of the success of those around you, but you have to put it in the back of your mind at the same time,” he elaborated. “Nothing is handed to you in this game. You have to earn it.”
A special treat for Fulmer was seeing the debut of Noah Syndergaard against the Chicago Cubs on May 12th. Syndergaard and Fulmer were roommates at St. Lucie in 2013.
Besides looking forward to pitching in the big leagues one day, Fulmer is also looking forward to tying the knot with his longtime girlfriend, Kelsey, in January 2016. Michael and Kelsey have been dating since ninth grade, so she is well aware that when Fulmer tells him “a dinger got him,” she knows he means he gave up a home run!
Earlier this season, on Aril 26th, “dinger” took on a special meaning for Fulmer, as he got a treat when he took the mound for St. Lucie against the Jupiter Hammerheads. Hitting third for the Hammerheads that day was none other than the aforementioned Brian Anderson., who is not only Fulmer’s former high school teammate, but also his best friend and the best man for his upcoming wedding. Fulmer broke with tradition on this night and gave his best man his thank you gift a full eight months before the wedding.
When Anderson came up to hit in the first inning, after the first two runners reached base safely, he took a fastball from Fulmer and hit it for a three-run home run!
Fulmer settled down after the Anderson homer, retiring 21 of the next 22 hitters he faced, while striking out nine, including Anderson.
However, the best man got the better of the overall duel on this night, as Anderson also hit a walk-off home run off of St. Lucie reliever Kevin McGowan in the ninth inning with one out, as Jupiter defeated St. Lucie 4-3.
On the mound Fulmer’s tools of operation include a fastball that sits in the 92-94 mph range, a slider, changeup, and a curveball.
“I have been staying away from the curveball lately,” stated Fulmer. “I think throwing the curve may have caused some problems with my elbow in the past, so I have been relying on the slider more now.”
Fulmer is appreciative of all the work the boosters do to make the players feel comfortable.
“I tell you, the road trip snacks really come in handy,” he says with a smile. “During the last bus trip back here we were all starving and had to stop at a Sheetz to load up with snacks. And for entertainment we had seven guys trying to solve a Rubik’s cube. In the end, we solved it, but those road trip packages we get when we leave town are greatly appreciated!”
In response to a question concerning how he and his teammates spend off days, Fulmer noted he had never been to the Baseball Hall of Fame and during one of the few off days the team has during the season, he may take a trip to Cooperstown.
Note: Maggiore is president of the Binghamton Mets Booster Club. His recent book, “Six More Wins: A Team, A Town, A Rebound, and a Championship” chronicles the 2014 championship season of the Binghamton Mets and is available on BN.com and Amazon.com.
* * * * * * * *
This Fan Shot was contributed by MMO reader Jim Maggiore. Have something you want to say about the Mets? Share your opinions with over 25,000 Met fans who read this site daily. Send your Fan Shot to us at [email protected]. Or ask us about becoming a regular contributor.
