Cole Sulser Bio
Cole Young Sulser (born March 12, 1990) is an American professional baseball pitcher who has spent his Major League Baseball career moving between several organizations, most recently with the Tampa Bay Rays. He made his MLB debut in 2019 with the Rays and has since appeared in the majors for Baltimore, Miami, Arizona, and New York as well, building a reputation as a durable and analytically minded right-handed reliever.
Sulser grew up in Santa Ysabel, California, a small mountain community east of San Diego. His early immersion in the game included Ramona Pony Baseball starting at age four and extensive travel-ball experience through his teens. His father worked as a general building contractor and also helped coach many of Sulser’s youth teams, providing an early foundation in baseball fundamentals.
Early Life and Background
Although Sulser grew up in Santa Ysabel, he attended elementary, middle, and high school in the town of Ramona, where his mother worked as a teacher. At Ramona High School, he played baseball all four years and also served as ASB President and a peer mentor. His father helped coach many of his youth baseball teams during those formative years.
Undrafted out of high school, Sulser enrolled at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. He distinguished himself academically by earning two bachelor’s degrees in public policy and mechanical engineering. He played college baseball for the Dartmouth Big Green, where his sophomore season set a program record with an 8–0 win–loss record, the most wins by any Dartmouth pitcher in a single season.
As a junior at Dartmouth in 2011, Sulser earned All-Ivy League honors but suffered an elbow ligament injury requiring Tommy John surgery that sidelined him for his entire senior year. His teammates nonetheless chose him as team captain. Granted a rare redshirt in the Ivy League for 2012, he returned in 2013 as a co-captain, made the All-Ivy League team again, and finished his Dartmouth career with 20 wins — second most in the school’s history.
Path to Major League Baseball
The Cleveland Indians selected Sulser in the 25th round of the 2013 MLB draft. He reported to the Low-A Mahoning Valley Scrappers of the New York–Penn League and posted a 3–2 record with a 1.83 ERA in 54 innings. He split the 2014 season between High-A Carolina Mudcats and Double-A Akron RubberDucks, going a combined 4–14 with a 5.43 ERA over 136 innings, a difficult campaign that tested his resilience.
A second Tommy John surgery in 2015 cost him the entire season, adding another major obstacle to his development path. After surgery and rehabilitation, Sulser returned in 2016 across three levels, posting a 2–5 record with a 4.34 ERA in 63 innings. His numbers improved steadily, and by 2018 — splitting the season again between Akron and Triple-A Columbus — he went 8–4 with a 3.86 ERA and 95 strikeouts in 60.67 innings, reaching career-best production and putting himself on the Cleveland organization’s radar.
Cole Sulser Career
Early Career (2013–2018)
Sulser spent his first six professional seasons navigating the Cleveland Indians’ farm system, working through four different minor league levels. His 2018 Triple-A campaign with Columbus proved to be the breakthrough performance the Indians had been waiting for, as his 8–4 record and 95-strikeout season earned him consideration for a higher-level opportunity.
On December 13, 2018, the Indians traded Sulser to the Tampa Bay Rays as part of a three-team deal that also sent Yandy Díaz to the Rays and brought Edwin Encarnación to Cleveland. The Rays assigned him to the Triple-A Durham Bulls for the 2019 season, where he posted a 3.27 ERA with 89 strikeouts in 66 innings.
Tampa Bay Rays Debut (2019)
The Rays selected Sulser’s contract and promoted him to the major leagues on September 2, 2019. He made his MLB debut against the Toronto Blue Jays on September 6, becoming the first Dartmouth graduate to appear in a big league game since 2014. The Rays designated him for assignment later that month when they activated Yandy Díaz from the 60-day injured list, ending his first MLB stint after just over three weeks.
Baltimore Orioles Era (2020–2021)
The Baltimore Orioles claimed Sulser off waivers on October 1, 2019, two days after his Rays designation. The 2020 shortened season was modest in results — Sulser pitched to a 5.56 ERA with 19 strikeouts and a 1–5 record in 19 appearances. However, 2021 proved transformative. Sulser broke out as a reliable middle and late-inning option, finishing 5–4 with eight saves, a 2.70 ERA, and 73 strikeouts in 63.33 innings. That 2.70 ERA marked one of the best marks among qualified American League relievers that season.
Miami Marlins (2022)
The Orioles traded Sulser and Tanner Scott to the Miami Marlins on April 3, 2022, in exchange for a draft pick, two minor leaguers, and a player to be named later. Sulser provided stability to the Marlins bullpen, adding further major league experience to his resume before moving on again at the end of the season.
Arizona Diamondbacks (2023)
The Arizona Diamondbacks claimed Sulser off waivers on November 8, 2022. He signed a contract for the 2023 season on November 18, 2022, avoiding arbitration. A right shoulder strain landed him on the 60-day injured list on April 9, 2023. He returned on July 30 but appeared in only four games before being designated for assignment on August 1.
New York Mets (2024)
After a brief second stint in the Tampa Bay Rays organization during late 2023, Sulser signed a minor league contract with the New York Mets on November 20, 2023. The Mets selected his contract on April 8, 2024. He appeared in four games for New York but struggled to a 9.64 ERA with seven strikeouts over 4.67 innings. The Mets designated him for assignment on July 22.
Tampa Bay Rays Return (2024–Present)
The Tampa Bay Rays reclaimed Sulser off waivers on July 26, 2024, in exchange for cash considerations. He made six scoreless appearances down the stretch, striking out eight batters in 11.67 innings. The Rays optioned him to the Triple-A Durham Bulls to begin the 2025 season, keeping him in their system heading into the new campaign.
Driving Style and Strengths
Sulser is a right-handed pitcher whose approach emphasizes controlling the strike zone with a fastball-slider combination and a changeup. His two-time Tommy John recovery speaks to his physical resilience. His Dartmouth education in mechanical engineering gives him a distinct analytical advantage in studying pitch movement and refining mechanics.
Notable Events and Milestones
The 2021 season with the Baltimore Orioles stands as Sulser’s most accomplished major league campaign, producing a 2.70 ERA and eight saves while becoming one of the American League’s more effective middle relievers. His MLB debut on September 6, 2019 made him the first Dartmouth graduate to reach the majors in five years.
Cole Sulser Career Wins
Across his MLB career through early 2026, Cole Sulser has appeared in 76 games, compiling an 11–14 record with a 3.82 ERA and 217 strikeouts. His best season by far came in 2021 with Baltimore, where his 2.70 ERA and eight saves represented the peak of his major league production.
Baltimore Orioles Highlights
In 2021, Sulser posted a 5–4 record with eight saves, a 2.70 ERA, and 73 strikeouts in 63.33 innings over 69 relief appearances. It was his first full and effective season at the highest level. His 2.70 ERA ranked among the more efficient marks in the American League bullpen that year.
Other Wins and Performances
At the Triple-A level, Sulser has compiled strong seasons with Durham in 2019 and again in 2024, regularly posting ERAs below 4.00 and serving as a key veteran presence in the Rays’ upper-minors system.
Cole Sulser Family
Family Background and Baseball Lineage
Sulser grew up in the mountains east of San Diego in Santa Ysabel, California, though his school years were spent in nearby Ramona. His father worked as a general building contractor and coached many of Sulser’s youth baseball teams. His mother was a teacher in the Ramona school district. His younger brother, Beau Sulser, also pursued professional baseball after a college career at Dartmouth College. His younger sister, Tiffany Sulser, serves in the United States Coast Guard.
Personal Life
Cole Sulser is married to Dana Sulser, a model and actress, whom he met in 2016 while playing Double-A baseball in Akron, Ohio, within the Cleveland Indians organization. The couple co-wrote and illustrated a children’s book together in 2020 called Benny the Pitcher. The Rays optioned Sulser to Triple-A Durham to begin the 2025 season, where he continues to refine his craft while remaining in position for a potential call-up during the campaign.