Like that one couple you know who it seems is always breaking up, then getting back together, then breaking up again, Carson Fulmer and the Pittsburgh Pirates are taking some time apart.

News broke yesterday that the Pirates had traded the right-hander to the Seattle Mariners organization. Fulmer is the second pitcher the Pirates have sold for cash in the last week, after Pittsburgh was forced to trade Joe La Sorsa following the lefty’s invocation of his upward mobility clause.

The 32-year-old wasn’t on Pittsburgh’s 40-man roster, but was making regular appearances for the team’s Triple-A affiliate in Indianapolis. In 34 innings, Fulmer struggled to a 6.35 ERA, 1.647 WHIP, and 1.80 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Indianapolis used him mostly as a long reliever; he tossed two innings or more in 11 of his 16 appearances.

But he does have 127 games and over 250 innings of big league experience to his name. Now, he’s off to the Mariners organization to continue his pro baseball career.

This is the fourth time that Fulmer and the Pirates have split, making for one of the weirder on-again, off-again relationships in baseball. And during his four separate times with the organization, not once has he ever suited up in the major leagues.

Fulmer’s first stint with the Pirates came back during the Covid season in 2020. Fulmer had arrived in Detroit just days into the season, and pitched a brief 6.2 innings for the Tigers, where he surrendered five earned runs and struck out seven.

Detroit designated him for assignment in mid-August, where the Pirates picked him up for the first time on waivers. He spent a little over a week on Pittsburgh’s roster, but never appeared in a game for the Pirates before he was DFA’d a second time that season.

He landed in Baltimore, throwing 3.2 scoreless innings for the Orioles before they tossed him back on the waiver wire. The Pirates put in a second claim, bringing him back to the organization to conclude a wonky for both the sport and Fulmer’s career.

He remained with Pittsburgh during the offseason, but in the opening weeks of spring training in 2021, the acquisition of right-hander Duane Underwood Jr., Fulmer was back on waivers on March 7th.

Seven days later, Fulmer was claimed by Pittsburgh’s divisional rival in Cincinnati. After a year of constant moving, Fulmer was able to settle in just a little bit. He split the season between the Reds and their Triple-A affiliate in Louisville, about an hour and a half away from Cincinnati. In the majors, Fulmer posted a 6.66 ERA with a 1.519 WHIP and 1.85 strikeout-to-walk ratio through 25.2 innings.

The following year, he was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers as part of the Rule 5 draft, but never appeared in a game for the club. He was released in May, but wound up with their Triple-A affiliate on a minor league deal. Fulmer spent the entire season with Triple-A Oklahoma City, throwing a stellar 2.86 ERA for the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League before leaving as a free agent.

He signed a minor league deal with Seattle (his new team) but was released before the season. After exactly two months on the unemployment line, he landed with the Los Angeles Angels. There, he split time between Triple-A Salt Lake and the Angels, throwing ten innings worth of 2.70 ERA ball with the latter.

It looked as if maybe the Angels could provide the longterm home Fulmer was looking for. They kept him around for the 2024 season, where he was a regular member of their pitching staff. In a career-high 86.2 innings, Fulmer recorded a 4.15 ERA, 1.396 WHIP, and 2.03 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

But the Angels didn’t see it the same way, and that winter saw Fulmer looking for work again. Once more, that phone call came from Pittsburgh, who inked him to a minor league deal and kicked him to Triple-A Indianapolis to open the 2025 campaign.

Fulmer struggled in Indianapolis. His ERA ballooned to 4.64 to go along with a 1.406 WHIP and 2.38 strikeout-to-walk ratio through 42.2 innings against International League opponents. The Pirates kept him in the system for the first two months before he was released in early June.

Two days later, the Angels picked him back up and had him split time between the majors and Triple-A. In the big leagues, he racked up a 5.83 ERA, 1.227 WHIP, and 2.36 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

Fulmer and the Angels have had a bit of a history as well. But, the Pirates and Fulmer, these two just can’t quit each other. After the 2025 season, the two linked back up for a fourth go-around. This season, he pitched once again for Triple-A Indianapolis, but really suffered on the mound.

His 6.35 ERA is one of the worst marks of his professional career, at any level. He will hope to quell the swell once he arrives with his new club. For his struggles, though, he might still be able to provide some reinforcements for a Rainers staff that has some struggling arms (assuming he starts in Triple-A Tacoma).

Although at this rate, it shouldn’t surprise us if the Pirates and Fulmer get back together at some point soon.