Tigers manager Brad Ausmus acknowledged Sunday that Michael Fulmer's workload is becoming an issue.
"He’s making it exceedingly difficult for us to keep his innings down," said Ausmus. "If he keeps going nine, it’s not going to resolve itself." The 23-year-old rookie recorded his first complete game in the bigs on Sunday, as well as his first career shutout, in a victory over the Texas Rangers. Fulmer has logged 120 innings of work for Detroit this season, exceeding the 86 he threw at Triple-A Toledo in 2015, and setting a new career-high in the process. With over a month left in the regular season, the promising young right-hander will likely be sat for a scheduled start or two down the stretch.
Fulmer is pacing the American League with a 2.25 ERA, good for fourth in the majors. He's striking out 7.73 batters per nine innings on the year, while also recording a 21.73 strikeout percentage and 1.02 WHIP (eighth-best in MLB). Through 19 starts, he owns a 10-3 record.
Source: Rotoworld.com