Six months from now, Emerson Hancock figures to be a very rich young man.
When examining the 2020 Major League Draft, Hancock’s name is one you consistently read about when breaking down the top college prospects who will hear their names called on selection day this June.
Along with Arizona State’s Spencer Torkelson and Vanderbilt shortstop Austin Martin, Hancock figures to be one of the first collegiate players selected. Some believe he could be No. 1 overall.
Hordes of scouts will be pointing their radar guns at Hancock every time he pitches. But as he takes the mound for the Bulldogs this spring, fame and fortune will have to wait.
“I’m really not worried about any of that a whole lot,” Hancock said. “I care more about winning for those guys in the locker room more than anything else. It means a lot to me to be able to represent the University of Georgia. I plan on taking full advantage of that.”
Bulldog skipper Scott Stricklin certainly appreciates the approach being taken by Hancock, who, along with fellow projected first-rounder Cole Wilcox and CJ Smith, give Georgia what could be one of the best weekend rotations in college baseball.
“To be honest, nothing has really changed. He’s still the same old kid. He’s from a small town—South Georgia, Cairo—and that’s just who he is. He’s a yes-sir and no-sir kind of guy, and he just puts his head down and works,” Stricklin said. “He doesn’t worry about the other stuff. He’s not annoyed by it, but with him, there’s still a lot he has to prove. He just goes about his business. He’s a really hard worker. It really helps when your most talented player is also your hardest worker. It helps your team, and that’s who he is.”
At 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, Hancock went 8-3 last year for the Bulldogs with an ERA of 1.99 in 14 starts with 97 strikeouts in 90 1/3 innings.
Armed with a repertoire that includes an upper-90s fastball with a nasty mid-80s slider, Hancock also mixes in an ever-improving curveball.
“Emerson is a great combination of pitchability and plus-stuff. He would have been a Top 5 pick in last year’s draft and the first college pitcher taken,” a current Major League scout told UGASports. “His track record for throwing strikes and impeccable fastball command really set him apart. He’s as complete of a college pitcher as you will see: big fastball, plus breaking ball and command. There’s a lot to like. A lot can happen between now and the draft, but he truly does have the chance to be No. 1.”
If he doesn’t, it won’t be due to a lack of effort.
Despite the predictions and accolades that have been tossed his way, Hancock, who is over the injury that hampered him the latter part of last spring, says there’s a ton he can still improve.
“Oh, there’s a lot. First thing as a pitcher you have to focus on is command. You want to have command of your fastball, your off-speed pitches, and I can get better with all that stuff,” Hancock said. “I can get better at the little things: holding runners on, being better getting off the mound, bunt defense, things like that. There’s a lot I can get better at, so if I can do those little things a little bit better, that will help me out.”
As good as he is on the field, Stricklin said Hancock might be even better off it.
“He checks all the boxes. Coach (pitching coach Sean) Kenny had a conversation with a scout who wanted to come and just evaluate him in the fall, even though he wasn’t pitching, basically evaluate him off the field,” Stricklin said. “Coach Kenny said you don’t need to waste your time; you can check them all off, he’s that kind of kid.
“Whatever organization decides to take him is going to be very fortunate, because he’s going to be the poster child for that organization, the one you’ll want to be out in front wearing that uniform.”
They’ll also be getting a competitor.
Bulldog shortstop Cam Shepherd can tell you a few stories about that.
“When he steps on the mound, everything changes. As soon as he steps off, he’s the nicest guy ever, but there’s something when he’s on that mound; he gets in that mindset and he’s ready to go,” Shepherd said. “He’s going to rip your head off. There’s no fun and games; he means business. It doesn’t matter if he’s throwing bullpen, an intra-squad or a game, he’s the same guy, and I think that’s what makes him so good.”
Hancock makes no bones about that.
“At the end of the day, I want to win. I want to win for my teammates and give them everything that I have,” Hancock said. “I put that into every single pitch, and if something goes wrong, I don’t execute a certain pitch, you’re going to get frustrated. It’s what you care about, it’s what makes you tick. It’s what comes out in me.”
For Hancock, pitching is not something he does once every seven days, either.
The All-SEC performer said his mother Mona, a speech language pathologist and educator, taught him a long time ago the value of being organized, a trait he applies to everything he does, every day of the week.
“I like to plan things out. I like to be organized. I like to know what I have to do each day, and how I have to go about it,” Hancock said. “I like to get to class at a certain time; that’s how I operate the best.”
Having the experience of being a two-year starter in the SEC is a good teacher, too.
“Last year taught me work ethic and taught me routine, a routine that’s fit best for me. What I really believe in is having that plan and that structure,” Hancock said. “Going through the experience of another year in the SEC, coming back, the game is a little bit slower.”
Of course, with success comes fame. Hancock is learning there’s a price to be paid there, too.
Stricklin can attest to that.
As a minor leaguer, Stricklin played with the likes of Torii Hunter and Andruw Jones and saw firsthand how the pair dealt with fame. Even at a young age, Stricklin said both of his former teammates handled their respective situations with aplomb.
He doesn’t expect Hancock to do any less.
“We’ve had some requests from reporters to talk to him about his draft status, but he doesn’t want to do it,” Stricklin said. “He feels like he hasn’t proven anything yet. He still feels like he’s got something to prove, and that’s the way to go about it. It’s really hard to get someone to buy into that, but he’s bought into it on his own. I don’t worry about him.”
Hancock doesn’t plan on changing, either.
“That (fame) shouldn’t change who you are or what you believe in or how you go about your business,” he said. “At the end of the day, I’m here to execute pitches, be the best teammate that I can be, and help these younger guys any way that I can.”
