Michael Fulmer wins 2016 AL Rookie of the Year Award

Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Michael Fulmer won the 2016 AL Rookie of the Year Award on Monday.

In one of the toughest decisions of the 2016 MLB award season, Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Michael Fulmer was named the 2016 AL Rookie of the Year by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America on Monday, according to MLB’s official Twitter account.

Fulmer came over to the Tigers from the New York Mets at the 2015 trade deadline as the centerpiece of the Yoenis Cespedes deal. While Fulmer was a bit of an afterthought given New York’s amount of young starting pitching talent, he instantly became one of Detroit’s top prospects, and earned a spot in the Tigers’ rotation by the end of April.

The 23-year-old was terrific for the Tigers with a 3.06 ERA (3.76 FIP) and 132 strikeouts to 42 walks in 159 innings. Fulmer easily led AL rookie starting pitchers in multiple categories and was in the mix for the AL ERA title for much of the season.

While Fulmer had a terrific debut season, he wasn’t a clear-cut choice for the voters. New York Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez made a late run at the award with a mind-boggling .299/.376/.657 line and 20 home runs in just 229 plate appearances. Had Sanchez been called up even a week or two earlier, the award outcome could have looked much different.

Tyler Naquin of the AL champion Cleveland Indians was also in the hunt as the other finalist for the honor. Injuries pressed the 25-year-old into action at the beginning of the season, and Naquin responded with a .296/.372/.514 line and 2.5 WAR in 116 games.

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While there isn’t much young talent left on an aging Detroit roster, Fulmer is poised for an outstanding career following his excellent rookie season.