Emerson Hancock

Emerson Christian Hancock (born May 31, 1999) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played college baseball at Georgia, and was selected sixth overall by the Mariners in the 2020 MLB draft. He made his MLB debut in 2023.

Amateur career
Hancock attended Cairo High School in Cairo, Georgia. As a senior, he went 11–1 with 0.75 earned run average (ERA) and 125 strikeouts over 65 innings. He was drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 38th round of the 2017 Major League Baseball draft. He did not sign with the Diamondbacks and honored his commitment to play college baseball at the University of Georgia.

As a freshman at Georgia in 2018, Hancock started 15 games, going 6–4 with a 5.10 ERA and 75 strikeouts in 77 $2/3$ innings. As a sophomore in 2019, he went 8–3 in 14 starts with a 1.99 ERA and 97 strikeouts in $90 1/3$ innings. After the season, he was invited to play for the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team. He made four starts in 2020 before the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Professional career
Hancock was selected sixth overall by the Seattle Mariners in the 2020 Major League Baseball draft. Hancock signed with the Mariners for a bonus of $5.7 million.

Hancock made his professional debut in 2021 with the Everett AquaSox of the High-A West. In June 2021, Hancock was selected to play in the All-Star Futures Game. He was promoted to the Arkansas Travelers of the Double-A Central in August. Over 12 starts between the two teams, he went 3-1 with a 2.62 ERA and 43 strikeouts over $44 2/3$ innings. He missed time during the season due to a shoulder injury. In 2023, Hancock returned to Arkansas, making 20 starts and posting an 11–5 record and 4.32 ERA with 107 strikeouts across 98.0 innings pitched.

On August 9, 2023, the Mariners selected Hancock's contract and promoted him to the major leagues. He made his MLB debut that day as the starting pitcher versus the San Diego Padres. He pitched 5 innings, giving up 2 hits, 1 earned run, 3 walks and 3 strikeouts. On August 20, Hancock was removed from a start against the Houston Astros with a right shoulder strain. He was subsequently placed on the injured list the next day. On August 22, Hancock was transferred to the 60–day injured list, ending his season. In 3 starts for Seattle during his rookie campaign, he logged a 4.50 ERA with 6 strikeouts in 12.0 innings of work.