Astros Draft Target: A Case for Carson Fulmer

The 2015 MLB Draft begins on Monday, June 8 and the Houston Astros have the second and fifth picks in the first round. In our continuing pre-draft series on the top names eligible for this year’s first-year player draft, this time we turn our attention to RHP Carson Fulmer.

Who is Carson Fulmer?

Carson Fulmer is a 6’0″, 195 lb right-handed pitcher for Vanderbilt University. After getting drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 15th round of the 2012 MLB Draft, he decided to go to college, and is now in his junior season with the Commodores. Vandy churns out a lot of Major League talent, including the likes of David Price, Sonny Gray, and Mike Minor. They also have several players, including Fulmer, projected to go high in this year’s draft.

Fulmer has played in three seasons for the Commodores, starting his college career as a reliever in 2013, and he transitioned to a starting role during his sophomore season. During 2015, he posted an 11-2 record with a 1.97 ERA/1.04 WHIP over 100.2 innings. He walked 38 batters while striking out 136, which is better than 1:4 BB to K ratio. He also averaged 1.4 Ks per inning this year.

Fulmer’s accolades for 2015 include being named SEC Pitcher of the Year and he is one of four finalists for the Golden Spikes Award. He led the SEC in wins, ERA, and strikeouts.

What does the scouting report say?

Here’s what Fueled By Sports had to say about Carson Fulmer:

"He’s a very hard thrower with a unique windup. His windup is quick and it looks like he’s trying way too hard to throw his arm out. Fulmer has the stuff to be a dominant starting pitcher but he may need to change his mechanics up just a bit. He releases at a three-quarter slot. It would be a waste of talent to put this guy in a big league bullpen. He’s a very fast working pitcher and has the ability to throw a lot of strikes, but he has had trouble with command at times. We’ve seen quirky mechanics work before and you never no [sic] it could work for Fulmer."

Scouting Grades (from Fueled By Sports):
Command: 3/5
Velocity: 4/5
Movement: 4/5
Mechanics: 3/5
Fastball: 4/5
Changeup: 3/5
Slider: 4/5
Curveball: 4/5
Overall: 29/40
Potential: B+

He has been favorably compared to Sonny Gray of the Oakland Athletics.

Los Angeles Dodgers show how far Carson Fulmer has fallen

Call to the Pen

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Pittsburgh Pirates: Carson Fulmer and His Potential in the BullpenRum Bunter

Where is Fulmer projected to get drafted?

Jim Callis of MLB.com – #5 Houston Astros

Timothy Rapp of Bleacher Report – #5 Houston Astros

John Manuel of Baseball America – #7 Boston Red Sox

David Rawnsley of Sports Illustrated – #8 Chicago White Sox

Will the Astros take him?

As you can see, there are at least two predictions that Houston will take him.

The Astros have traded away a couple of top-ranked pitching prospects over the past year, Mike Foltynewicz and Nick Tropeano. With Mark Appel having some trouble at AA so far this season, the team may be looking to add some more top-notch pitching to the farm system. Given that Fulmer has three years under his belt at the collegiate level, he could progress quickly through the minor league system. With a comparison to Sonny Gray, Fulmer has a high ceiling.

If the Astros were to take him at #5, I think he’d sign.

Keep up with our pre-draft series:

Astros Draft Prospect: Kyle Funkhouser

Astros Draft Prospect: Trenton Clark

Astros Draft Prospect: Walker Buehler

Astros Draft Prospect: Jon Harris

Astros Draft Prospect: Tyler Jay

Astros Draft Prospect: Andrew Benintendi

Astros Draft Prospect: Kyle Tucker

Astros Draft Prospect: Daz Cameron

Astros Draft Prospect: Dillon Tate

Astros Draft Prospect: Alex Bregman