Pirates settle for depth with underwhelming journeyman pitching reunion

The Pittsburgh Pirates added another arm to spring training competition Monday, but the move said far more about organizational caution than offseason ambition.

Right-hander Carson Fulmer has returned to the organization on a minor league contract with an invitation to big league camp, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Colin Beazley. For Fulmer, it represents a fourth stint with the Pirates — remarkably, without ever appearing in a regular-season major league game for the club.

For Pittsburgh, it represents something else entirely: another depth-focused reunion with a familiar journeyman as the final pieces of the pitching staff begin to sort themselves out.

Fulmer, now 32, once carried the expectations of a franchise cornerstone. The No. 8 overall pick in the 2015 MLB Draft out of Vanderbilt arrived in professional baseball with ace-level projections and one of the most electric college résumés of the decade.

That version of Fulmer never fully materialized in the professional ranks. Across parts of several big league seasons, the right-hander has transitioned into a swingman role, most recently providing serviceable innings for the Los Angeles Angels. Over the past three seasons, Fulmer posted a 4.43 ERA across 126 innings while working primarily as a multi-inning reliever and occasional starter.

A 20.9% strikeout rate paired with a 10.2% walk rate places Fulmer squarely in replacement-level territory, and his Triple-A résumé tells a similar story. During his most recent stint with Indianapolis last season, he logged a 4.64 ERA across 42 2/3 innings while bouncing between starting and relief assignments.

In other words, Fulmer provides insurance — not upside. And that distinction matters for a Pirates team openly signaling competitive intentions entering 2026.

Carson Fulmer returns to Pirates — again — as minor league bullpen depth

General manager Ben Cherington spent much of the offseason reshaping the Pirates' roster around a rotation anchored by Paul Skenes and supported by Mitch Keller and a wave of emerging young pitching. The bullpen, meanwhile, already appears largely spoken for.

Dennis Santana, Gregory Soto, Isaac Mattson, Justin Lawrence and Carmen Mlodzinski are widely expected to break camp with the club if healthy. Mason Montgomery — acquired alongside Brandon Lowe in the three-team trade that sent Mike Burrows to Houston — also appears positioned to claim a role.

The final bullpen spots are shaping up as a crowded competition involving Evan Sisk, Kyle Nicolas, Cam Sanders and Yohan Ramirez, who may hold a roster advantage due to being out of minor league options. Fulmer now joins that mix alongside fellow non-roster veterans Chris Devenski, Joe La Sorsa and Beau Burrows.

There's logic to this strategy, but it reinforces a lingering reality. Despite an offseason defined by aggressive offensive upgrades and renewed expectations, Pittsburgh continues to rely heavily on reclamation projects and journeymen to stabilize the margins of its pitching staff rather than pursuing higher-ceiling relief options externally.

Fulmer fits the organization’s pitching profile well — durable, flexible and familiar with the system’s expectations. Whether that familiarity ultimately translates into long-awaited major league innings in Pittsburgh remains uncertain, but history suggests the Pirates view him less as a breakthrough candidate and more as a contingency plan waiting in Indianapolis.