Carson Fulmer was the White Sox first-round pick in 2015 out of Vanderbilt University, taken No. 8 overall. He had a bit of an up-and-down first full season, though he did reach the big leagues briefly and pitched in the All-Star Futures Game. Fulmer is No. 71 on the Top 100 Prospects list and No. 5 on the White Sox Top 30.
MLBPipeline.com: Everyone likes to get the reaction of guys coming in via trades. You're a guy who was already here and watched all that happen. What was your reaction when you saw all these great arms coming to join you?
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Fulmer: It's what you want. It was hard losing Sale, obviously, with him being a leader in the clubhouse and how he made us young guys feel comfortable. Then again, you got a good return, for him and for Adam Eaton. I've played with Lucas Giolito quite a bit, I played against Dane Dunning quite a bit when he was at Florida. It's good for us. You look at the guys we got, they're special guys. If we want to win a championship here, we have to have that and build up with young guys. I think that's what the organization is doing.
MLBPipeline.com: Before the trades, you were kind of "the guy." Now you're just one of the guys. Does that take a little pressure off? Or does the competition make you realize you better bring your "A" game every day?
Fulmer: It's never like that. I have always been the guy who loves being around guys who want to compete. The guys who want to compete are really good. When you bring these acquisitions in and you're around them, there's no competition. We all have one goal, and that's to win the World Series, to be the best team in all of baseball. For me, I sit back and continue to build with the guys who are in the clubhouse, and I think we're going to turn things around here pretty quickly.
MLBPipeline.com: Between the trades and bringing in a guy like Zack Burdi in the Draft, you have like the fifth-hardest fastball in the system. You OK with that?
Fulmer: That's fine. As pitchers, you just try to get hitters out no matter how hard you throw. You can't beat those guys' fastballs. They definitely compete really well and they have the same goal as all of us in here.
MLBPipeline.com: You had a few starts in Triple-A at the end of the year, where things seemed to click. You tweaked some things mechanically. How did you find a comfort zone there?
Fulmer: When I went down to Triple-A, I was able to work with Richard Dotson, our Triple-A pitching coach. He was the same build as I was. He had the same kind of issues, in a sense, but he had success. You have to be around guys like that and he was willing to help me stay tall. I felt that I got flat at times, but now I think I've figured that out. Those failures in my career, I had never really experienced. I think that last year was really beneficial in so many different ways, because I was able to correct those and get back to where I want to be. I'm excited. I feel really good, even before I got to camp. I'm just trying to take those experiences and keep moving forward.
MLBPipeline.com: It always seems for you there's been a balance -- everyone always talked about your tempo in your delivery, that it was too quick. But it worked for you. Last year, you tried to slow yourself a little bit. Is this also finding a way to slow yourself down enough so you can repeat your delivery, but not losing who you are in the process?
Fulmer: Yeah, it was a comfort thing. I was slowing down a lot. It would feel good, then it would feel uncomfortable. Then I would get too quick. Now I feel like I've figured out the pace I need. It's somewhere in the middle, I would say. I'm just continuing to keep my delivery fluid. I've tried to make a couple of mechanical adjustments, but for the most part, I feel really good and fluid. I feel a lot more consistent when I deliver each pitch.
MLBPipeline.com: The Vandy connection, it's such a brotherhood. How often are you checking in with those guys? People seem to be ready to hand Dansby Swanson the National League Rookie of the Year Award already.
Fulmer: Dansby is one of my best friends. I'm getting married this year, so I'm looking forward to him being in the wedding. Walker Buehler is out here, so I'll see him. Even when it comes to David Price, Sonny Gray, Pedro Alvarez, we all continuously stay in touch. I'm glad I went to school and got those experiences.