Mariners Trade with Pirates for Former First-Round Pick After Cooper Criswell Hits IL

The boring side of roster building usually means it actually matters.

Mar 16, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Carson Fulmer (41) throws a pitch against the New York Yankees during the first inning at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images | Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

Sometimes small transactions can look like a nothing burger for a few minutes. Then the second shoe drops, and everything makes sense. The Mariners placed Cooper Criswell on the 15-day injured list with a right shoulder strain and recalled Nick Davila from Triple-A. That came after the M’s acquired right-hander Carson Fulmer from the Pittsburgh Pirates, according to Alex Stumpf.

On its own, the Fulmer trade looked like a standard depth transaction. Fulmer was not on Pittsburgh’s 40-man roster, so the Mariners didn’t have to blow up anything to bring him in. 

But with Criswell heading to the injured list, the timing no longer feels so random. One arm goes down. One taxi-squad option becomes a big league reliever. That creates a Triple-A vacancy. Let the backfill begin.

Fulmer looks like simple pitching insurance. Though he does bring some name value, at least in a baseball memory-bank kind of way. The Chicago White Sox selected him eighth overall in the first round of the 2015 MLB Draft after a standout collegiate career at Vanderbilt. Back then, he was one of the bigger arms in the country.

But unfortunately, Fulmer’s professional career has turned into a journeyman ride. He has spent time with the White Sox, Tigers, Orioles, Reds, Angels and Pirates. He’s started, he’s relieved. He’s essentially bounced around as an emergency option.

Cooper Criswell’s Injury Gives This Move a Clearer Purpose

Criswell going to the IL forces Davila up from Tacoma. Davila was already with the club on the taxi squad, so Seattle clearly had him close while they were monitoring the situation with Criswell. 

Fulmer’s numbers at Triple-A Indianapolis this season are not exactly screaming a steal. He was 2-2 with a 6.35 ERA across 16 games, including two starts. He struck out 27 batters and walked 15 in 34 innings. 

He’s not going to blow you away with velo. His fastball sits around 92.7 mph, while his changeup is around 87 mph. It’s not a separator that’s going to fool major league hitters if we’re being honest. He has to have good location to survive. And there’s just not enough raw stuff here for him to fake his way through trouble.

But for Seattle’s purposes, that’s probably fine. It seems they just need him to be available, experienced and capable of covering innings.

Not trying to make a prediction, but just don’t be surprised if he never throws a pitch for Seattle. That’s entirely possible. Maybe even likely. But the Mariners didn’t need a headline-grabbing trade here. They needed another arm they could stash without disturbing the 40-man roster. What the Pirates received in return hasn’t been announced just yet.

But the M’s are just making sure they are not one injury away from wishing they had another arm already in the building.