Rumor: Blue Jays interested in Detroit Tigers’ reliever Michael Fulmer

The Detroit Tigers may send Michael Fulmer to the team they are currently playing

If the Detroit Tigers wind up trading Michael Fulmer, he may not have to go very far. MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reports that the Toronto Blue Jays have expressed interest in the Tigers’ right-hander. Of course, the Tigers are in Toronto playing the Blue Jays in a four-game series right now.

Morosi reports that the Jays are “among the teams” that are interested in Fulmer, which obviously implies that they aren’t the only ones to give Al Avila a phone call. But since Toronto was the one team mentioned, we’re going to focus on them here. Let’s start with the need.

The Blue Jays are currently ranked 17th in MLB in bullpen ERA. Their bullpen has been an issue for the last couple of years now, as they ranked 16th in the league in bullpen ERA a year ago. They’ve dealt with a few injuries in the backend, with Julian Merryweather and Anthony Kay both on the IL. They have finally found some continuity at closer with the emergence of All-Star Jordan Romano.

However, they have still struggled with consistency. Fulmer would give them more of that. He’s got a 2.77 ERA in 39 innings this season. You pretty much know exactly what you’re gonna get with him. He’s going to come in, spam sliders, and pound the zone. Most importantly, he’s going to get outs.

The biggest thing Tigers fans want to know is what Toronto has to offer in terms of prospects. For starters, don’t get too greedy. Fulmer is a free agent at the end of year, so he’d be a rental. Don’t expect to get Gabriel Moreno or Orelvis Martinez in return.

However, there are some pretty interesting arms in the latter half of MLB Pipeline’s top 30 Blue Jays prospects list. No. 18 prospect Adrian Hernandez is a reliever that struck out 108 batters in 62.1 innings last year. The strikeout numbers haven’t been as crazy this year, but the 22-year-old is still keeping the walks down.

No. 19 prospect Yosver Zulueta, 24, has struck out 69 in 44.1 innings this season across three levels of the minors. The walks are up a bit in Triple-A, but he’s still missing bats.

But what Tigers fans really want to hear more about are bats, and No. 30 prospect Spencer Horwitz is one to keep an eye on. He’s a 24-year-old first baseman in Triple-A. He had a .930 OPS in 70 games at Double-A before getting promoted.

Horwitz draws a lot of walks and has good gap-to-gap power, which would play well at Comerica Park. He walked more than he struck out in 2021. Not a ton of home run pop—12 home runs each of the past two seasons—but he hits lots of doubles, and the Tigers will take any extra-base power they can get.

This is a rumor to keep an eye on. The Detroit Tigers are in Toronto through the weekend, so the Blue Jays will likely get a front-row seat. They did last night when he struck out two and walked one in a scoreless eighth inning. This is just the first rumor involving a Tigers reliever, and it probably won’t be the last. Stick with Motor City Bengals for all the Detroit Tigers-related MLB Trade Deadline coverage.