The Boston Red Sox announced on Sunday that they were placing starting pitcher Richard Fitts on the 15-day injured list due to a right pectoral strain.
Fitts was removed from his Saturday start against the Chicago White Sox with right shoulder pain, after limiting the Pale Hose to two hits and one walk while striking out five across five-plus scoreless innings.
While the team hasn’t given a timeline for the 25-year-old’s return to action, MassLive’s Chris Cotillo reported on Saturday evening that there was “clear concern about Fitts’ short-term future on the mound.”
The Red Sox selected the contract of veteran righthander Michael Fulmer from Triple-A in a corresponding move. Fulmer could join the Boston bullpen or rotation, as he has 90 starts in his 262 career games in seven MLB seasons. He’s started two of his three games with Worcester this season.
Richard Fitts Joins Host of Other Starting Pitchers on IL
With a bevy of injuries to the team’s pitching staff late in the offseason, Fitts took advantage of the opportunity and won a spot in the starting rotation. He had a solid Spring Training and then posted a 3.18 ERA in 17 innings covering three starts before going down with the injury.
Fitts is the latest in a long list of injured Red Sox starters.
While arms like Brayan Bello (shoulder) and Lucas Giolito (hamstring) are making progress and expected back soon, they remain on the IL, as well as Chris Murphy (Tommy John surgery), Patrick Sandoval (elbow) and Kutter Crawford (knee).
Bello and Giolito (the projected No. 4 and No. 5 pitchers in the starting rotation) have both completed multiple Triple-A rehab outings and will have at least one more appearance before a possible activation.
Michael Fulmer Hasn’t Pitched Since 2023
Boston signed Fulmer to a two-year minor-league deal in February 2024, one of many curious moves from that offseason.
The 32-year-old was drafted by the New York Mets in the first round of the 2011 MLB June Amateur Draft but was traded to the Detroit Tigers in July 2015 in a deal that landed former All-Star outfielder Yoenis Cespedes in Queens.
Fulmer made his big-league debut with the Tigers in April 2016 and finished the season with a career-best 11-7 record across 159 innings pitched (26 starts), as well as what are still career-best marks in strikeouts (132) and WHIP (1.11) on his way to earning AL Rookie of the Year honors. Fulmer made his lone All-Star team in 2017 and posted a 3.83 ERA and 1.15 WHIP, despite a 10-12 record over 164 2/3 innings covering 25 starts.
He struggled in 2018 before missing the entire 2019 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Following the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign, Fulmer was converted to a reliever and has stayed in that role since, posting a career-low 2.97 ERA in 69 2/3 innings pitched (52 games) in 2021.
The Oklahoma native then split the 2022 campaign between the Tigers and Minnesota Twins, before pitching out of the Chicago Cubs bullpen in 2023. He underwent UCL revision surgery following that season and missed the entire 2024 campaign.
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