Fulmer Serves Up Shutout in 6-0 Barons Victory
CHATTANOOGA, TN - Birmingham Barons starter Carson Fulmer threw his first shutout of the season, blanking the Chattanooga Lookouts over six strong innings to snap a five-game losing streak as part of a 6-0 victory.
Fulmer, the White Sox first round selection in the 2015 MLB Amateur Draft, spun six innings and fanned six as well, setting a new season-high strikeout mark for the Barons. The 22-year-old out of Vanderbilt University walked none and surrendered no home runs, earning the first win of his professional career in his 13th pro outing.
Pitching into the sixth inning for the first time this season, Fulmer worked through the first two Lookouts hitters before outdueling Chattanooga hitter D.J. Hicks on a 12-pitch at-bat to record his final out of the night. In total, Fulmer tossed 60 strikes on 104 total pitches and recorded nine groundouts compared to just one fly-out.
Jake Peter plated the first run of the game for the Barons, scoring Nicky Delmonico to give Birmingham a 1-0 lead in the seventh inning. A Joey DeMichele double scored Trey Michalczewski for the Barons second run of the frame, and Omar Narvaez added an insurance run on his second double of the season to start a productive ninth inning.
Chattanooga's third error of the night allowed Narvaez to score for a 4-0 lead, setting up Adam Engel's RBI triple and advancement home on another error to give Birmingham the final 6-0 advantage just a few batters later.
LHP Brian Clark and RHP Peter Tago combined to throw three scoreless innings in relief, with Tago locking down the first save of the season and adding two strikeouts for the Barons first shutout win of the year.
Quote Sheet: Barons RHP Carson Fulmer
…On his battle with D.J. Hicks to record the final out of his start.
You've gotta give Hicks the credit. He's a competitive hitter, he knows what he's doing at the plate and he was just fouling balls off until he got one to hit. I think it was the 13th or 14th pitch of the at-bat he forced me to throw the ball over the middle of the plate on a 3-2 count and he squared it up. Luckily for me he was able to hit it to the deepest part of the park and the result was in my favor. Like I said, you've got to give him credit. He's the one fouling 'em off and competing against me.
…On maintaining his command, working into the middle innings, and throwing over 100 pitches
I'm continuing to stick to what I've done since the start of spring training. It was one of those nights where I was able to throw more strikes, more quality strikes in the zone, and just keep all my pitches - my fastball through my breaking ball - consistently in the strike zone. I feel like I got some quick outs early on and then had to battle more later on in the game.
I'm feeling good. I'm building off each start, taking the positives out of them, and I'm going to come to the park tomorrow and get ready for the next one.
… On exactly how much he can build off of this start
Luckily I was able to get my first win, but I take it with a grain of salt. Take the positives from every start, regardless of if it's positive or negative, and move on. It's a long year, I'm going to have more starts, and you've got to have a quick memory regardless of if it's a good start or a bad start.
... On following up a strong start from Tyler Danish and snapping a losing streak
It just gives us momentum to build off of. We ran into a little bump, I think it was about five games, and you've got to just continue to come to the park and put together quality starts, quality AB's, and quality approaches. I felt like tonight we were on the positive side of the ball and I figure there are a lot of positive things to build off this win. We have a strong clubhouse of guys who want to win now, and it's just a matter of staying on that path and taking the positives out of everything.
… On whether there are any specific improvements or further adjustments he needs to make
I just need to stay simple. Continue to throw strikes, keep the game simple in all types of regards, and build off of it. This is a win, this is a quality start, but you don't know what results are going to happen next time. You've got to keep it simple and continue to move on.
About the Birmingham Barons
The Birmingham Barons return to Regions Field April 28th for a five game set against the Pensacola Blue Wahoos. For further information about the Barons and the 2016 season at Regions Field, please call (205) 988-3200 or visit www.barons.com, www.facebook.com/birminghambarons or on Twitter: @bhambarons.