
John Fulgham
BASEBALL – Advisory Board
Few people get to fulfill the childhood dream of playing for their hometown team, but John Fulgham did just that. Fulgham was born in St. Louis and grew up as a diehard Cardinals fan, idolizing some of the players he would very quickly be playing with on the same field.
Fulgham has been around sports his entire life. As a youth he excelled in soccer, football and baseball. Having been named All American in both football and baseball, he moved on to play collegiately for two Hall of Fame baseball coaches: Gary Ward at Yavapai CC and Ron Fraser at the University of Miami. At Miami, he set a record which still stands today for the lowest Earned Run Average in a season (0.54). While in college he was drafted in the first round twice. First by the New York Yankees and then ultimately signing with the St. Louis Cardinals as the 15th player taken in the draft.
In his first full year in professional baseball, he won 18 games, with 17 complete games and was named to the Topps Minor-League All-Star Team. In the Florida Fall League that same year, he went 5-0 and was named to the All-League Team. He quickly catapulted into the St. Louis Cardinals starting rotation and was named Rookie of the Year by the St. Louis sportswriters. Although his major league career was shortened by a rotator cuff injury, it was a successful one. His total statistical line in MLB of 231 1/3 innings pitched, 14 wins, 14 complete games, three shutouts, 2.84 ERA, 1.068 WHIP, and a 5.0 pitching WAR reads like the season of a Cy Young Award contender.
With one career ended it was time to start another. After stints as a broadcaster on radio and television, it was time to pursue a career in coaching. After stints assisting at Florida State and the University of Central Oklahoma – Fulgham became the Head Coach of Division II power Rollins College. In less than one year, Fulgham led Rollins from a losing record the year prior to a school record 46 wins, DII Regional berth and its only Number #1 national ranking in history after wins on the road against the University of Florida and his alma mater the University of Miami.
Fulgham has over 30 years of sports coaching experience. Having coached everything from beginners to elite youth to collegiate to professional athletes. In addition to his baseball expertise, he is also a certified ASA Softball coach as well as having a National Coaching License for Soccer. He helped many athletes (male and female) make the jump from recreational to elite, from elite to college, and from college to professional sports.