Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Notches another quality start
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Hancock (2-2) earned the win after he tossed six innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits and a walk while striking out four batters in Seattle's 10-2 victory in Game 2 of Sunday's doubleheader with Colorado.
Hancock had his start pushed back a couple days due to Friday's weather postponement and he impressed with the added rest. The right-hander limited the Rockies to just five baserunners while the only blemish on his line came in the bottom of the first inning when Elias Diaz ripped a two-RBI double. Hancock has produced back-to-back quality starts and he now owns a 6.10 ERA and 1.26 WHIP with 15 punchouts over 20.2 innings in four outings this season. The 24-year-old is tentatively set to return to the mound Friday at home versus the Diamondbacks.
Hancock and the Mariners will not play Friday after their contest against the Rockies was postponed due to inclement weather, Kyle Newman of The Denver Post reports.
The game will be made up as part of a doubleheader Sunday. Hancock and Dakota Hudson had been slated to start Friday but will be pushed back at least one day to Saturday.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Posts quality start but takes loss
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Hancock (1-2) took the loss against the Cubs on Saturday, allowing two runs on four hits and no walks while striking out four batters over six innings.
Hancock allowed a run in each of the second and third frames but otherwise pitched very well, registering his first quality start of the campaign. However, Seattle's offense managed just an unearned run against talented Cubs rookie Shota Imanaga, resulting in Hancock taking his second loss. Hancock will nonetheless look to build upon this promising outing after being battered for eight runs over 3.1 innings against Milwaukee in his previous start.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Velocity dip noted in loss
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Hancock, who allowed eight runs over 3.1 innings to the Brewers on Sunday, has seen some dip in velocity since the start of spring training and could have his next turn in the rotation skipped, Shannon Drayer of 710 ESPN Seattle reports.
The Mariners won't need a No. 5 starter again until April 16 thanks to an off day on Thursday, but Bryan Woo (elbow), who Hancock is filling in for in the Mariners' rotation, may not yet be ready to return at that point. Nevertheless, Drayer speculates Hancock may not necessarily get the call in such a scenario, noting manager Scott Servais may want to have him take a step back and also work on building toward the velocity he was displaying when he first reported to camp. Hancock had impressed with a 97 mph two-seamer and 90 mph changeup at that point, but those figures were at 92.9 and 87.3, respectively, during Sunday's abbreviated outing.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Knocked around for eight runs
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Hancock (1-1) took a bad loss Sunday against the Brewers, allowing eight runs on 11 hits and a walk while striking out six over 3.1 innings.
One positive to note for Hancock was that his six strikeouts doubled his previous career-best, as he has just a 14 percent strikeout rate over five starts. Sunday was also easily the roughest outing of his career. Eight of the 14 balls put in play against him were hard hit, which included two home runs. The 25-year-old will stay in the rotation for now and lines up for a home start against the Cubs in the upcoming week.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Earns first big-league win
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Hancock (1-0) earned the win over Cleveland on Monday, allowing three runs on four hits and one walk while striking out one batter over 5.1 innings.
Hancock slid into Seattle's rotation as a result of Bryan Woo's elbow injury and consequent placement on the injured list. Though he was far from dominant in his season debut, Hancock limited traffic on the basepaths and held the Guardians without an extra-base hit until the sixth inning, when Tyler Freeman knocked a solo homer off the right-hander to end his outing. Hancock doesn't have the type of overpowering stuff that fantasy managers like to see in a pitcher, but he should get at least a few more turns in the rotation with Woo expected to be sidelined several more weeks.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Recalled from Triple-A
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The Mariners recalled Hancock from Triple-A Tacoma on Thursday.
The 24-year-old had been sent down last week, but he will enter the Seattle rotation as a replacement for the injured Bryan Woo (elbow). Hancock's first start of the season is slated to come Monday against the Guardians.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Stepping into starting rotation
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Hancock will step into the Mariners' rotation to replace Bryan Woo (elbow), Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.
Hancock was just optioned down two days ago, but he has rejoined the big-league team in light of Woo's injury and will step in as the fifth starter, beginning next Monday in the series opener against Cleveland. Woo's MRI came back clean, but he will be shut down from throwing for at least a week. With that, Hancock, the sixth overall pick in 2020, figures to make at least a few starts early on. His numbers in the Cactus League were not good, but the Mariners were said to be pleased with Hancock's overall spring training, Divish adds.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Optioned to Triple-A
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The Mariners optioned Hancock to Triple-A Tacoma on Saturday, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.
Hancock was never able to get comfortable on the mound this spring, surrendering 11 earned runs over just 9.2 frames. He'll head to Triple-A for the first time in his career, and he likely won't return to the majors until he strings together several successful minor-league outings.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Standing out in spring
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Hancock, who fired two perfect innings with three strikeouts against the Athletics in his Cactus League debut Saturday, has impressed manager Scott Servais with his aggressiveness thus far this spring, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports. "I love that's where he's at right now," Servais said.
Hancock still faces an uphill battle to snag an Opening Day spot if the Mariners' projected rotation makes it out of spring training unscathed, but he's been giving Servais something to think about since arriving in camp. The talented but oft-injured right-hander told the Seattle skipper in an earlier conversation he wanted to break camp with the big-league club, and he took the first official step toward forcing the issue Saturday with his dominant performance, which featured an improved fastball that sat between 94 and 96 mph, a changeup that got up to 90 mph and a cutter-slider hybrid that he's been working on. "I put a lot of work in this offseason trying to get back on track, get the velo back up," Hancock said. "And then ... when I get my work, I'm done. I don't want to overwork. I want to make sure that when I go into a start, I'm as fresh as possible."
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Throwing in camp
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Hancock (shoulder) threw a bullpen session Wednesday at Mariners camp.
After receiving his first big-league call-up in early August, Hancock made just three starts for the Mariners before suffering a Grade 1 shoulder strain, which ended his season. Fortunately for the 24-year-old, he avoided any structural damage and didn't require offseason surgery, so he looks like he'll begin spring training at full health. Hancock will be given a chance to compete for a spot in Seattle's Opening Day rotation, but with five other healthy, more established pitchers in front of him in Luis Castillo, George Kirby, Bryce Miller, Bryan Woo and Bryce Miller, it may take an injury in order for Hancock to avoid an assignment to Triple-A Tacoma once camp comes to a close.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: No structural damage in shoulder
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Hancock, who isn't expected to pitch again this season due to a shoulder injury, has been diagnosed with a Grade 1-plus shoulder strain with no tear or structural damage, the team's official site reports.
Hancock received a PRP injection in his shoulder Tuesday in an effort to speed up the healing process. The promising right-hander's recovery period is estimated to be 4-to-6 weeks from Aug. 20, the date he suffered the injury. At minimum, Hancock should be able to regain full health fairly early in the offseason, teeing up what will be a key spring training for him in 2024 as he gears up to potentially become a permanent fixture in the big-league rotation.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Transferred to 60-day IL
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Hancock (shoulder) was transferred to the 60-day injured list Tuesday.
Hancock was placed on the 15-day injured list after he left Sunday's game with a right shoulder strain. Now on the 60-day IL, the 24-year-old cannot return for the rest of the regular season. Bryan Woo (forearm) was activated from the injured list Tuesday as well, and the Mariners also signed veteran Luke Weaver as additional pitching reinforcement.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Lands on injured list
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Hancock was placed on the 15-day injured list Monday with a right shoulder strain.
Hancock left Sunday's game with the injury, and he will wind up missing at least a couple weeks. He will presumably be replaced in the rotation by Bryan Woo (forearm), who is nearly ready to return from the injured list.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: IL stint possible
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Hancock, who exited Sunday's start against the Astros after two innings due to a shoulder/lat injury, could be headed for a stint on the injured list, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.
The rookie felt something "kind of grab" in his lat after he fired a scoreless second inning, per manager Scott Servais, leading to the decision to end his afternoon early. Hancock got his 2023 season off to a delayed start because of a lat strain he suffered during minor-league minicamp in February, and he's battled shoulder issues since he was drafted in 2020. The right-hander is still officially considered day-to-day for the moment, but Divish notes it's "likely" Hanock heads to the IL in coming days and the Mariners temporarily adjust their plans for a six-man rotation.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Exits start with shoulder strain
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Hancock was removed after two innings in his start Sunday against the Astros due to a right shoulder strain. He struck out two and gave up no runs on two hits and no walks prior to departing.
The rookie right-hander was making his third start for Seattle after covering five innings in both of his first two big-league outings and giving up six earned runs on 11 hits and three walks. He was off to a strong start Sunday before the injury prompted the Mariners to lift him from the contest after 31 pitches. Though the Mariners are set to welcome right-hander Bryan Woo (forearm) back from the injured list for their series in Chicago that begins Monday, the team had planned to keep Hancock around as part of a six-man rotation during the upcoming week. Hancock's injury probably nixes those plans.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Struggles against Royals
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Hancock did not factor into the decision Tuesday, allowing five runs on nine hits over five innings against the Royals. He struck out one.
After holding the Padres to one run over five innings in his MLB debut, Hancock surrendered nine hits and five runs Tuesday. All of the runs came in the fifth, where Bobby Witt tagged him for a grand slam as part of a five-hit frame. After earning a 10.0 K/9 at Double-A Arkansas this season, Hancock has struggled to accumulate strikeouts at the MLB level, having fanned four batters across 10 innings thus far. The rookie shouldn't earn much streaming consideration for his next start, which is tentatively scheduled to come against the Astros on Sunday.
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Mariners' Emerson Hancock: Remains in rotation
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Hancock is slated to start Tuesday's game in Kansas City.
The rookie will receive a second turn through the rotation after he turned in a solid big-league debut last Wednesday against the Padres. Though he didn't factor into the decision in the Mariners' 6-1 win, Hancock covered five innings and allowed one run on two hits and three walks while striking out three. Tuesday's outing marks what's expected to be the first of two starts this week for Hancock, who tentatively lines up to take the hill again this Sunday in Houston.
