Fulmer sets Tigers rookie record before having streak snapped
Michael Fulmer saw his scoreless streak come to an end Friday, but not before he ensured his place in Detroit Tigers lore.
The first two outs of Friday's game against the Kansas City Royals meant Fulmer had thrown 29 consecutive scoreless innings, surpassing John Hiller's string of 28 2/3 consecutive shutout innings in 1967 for the longest streak by a rookie hurler in franchise history.
Fulmer was quickly working his way up the charts in league history until Royals catcher Salvador Perez ended his streak at 33 1/3 innings with a home run. It was the first run allowed by the 23-year-old since Evan Longoria took him deep on May 21.
As it stands, Fulmer's impressive streak left quite the mark on the Tigers and baseball. His scoreless run is the longest such streak by a Tigers pitcher since at least 1961, according to the team, and the second-longest streak by a rookie pitcher since 1974. Fernando Valenzuela had a 35-inning scoreless run on the mound for the Dodgers in 1981.
His four consecutive shutout performances before Friday's start made him the first rookie to record four straight scoreless outings since Hall of Famer Grover Cleveland Alexander did it with the Phillies in 1911.
Fulmer also lowered his ERA by over two-and-a-half runs, from 5.13 to 2.43, over his shutout streak.