Emerson Hancock's make-or-break Mariners season is off to a promising start

If you’re looking for the cleanest summary of Emerson Hancock’s Mariners reality in 2026, it’s this: he doesn’t have time to be “interesting” anymore. It’s time to be useful. Preferably like, right now.

On Feb. 21, in his spring debut, Hancock at least looked like a guy who understands the assignment.

The headline number is the fastball. Hancock reached 95.7 mph with the four-seamer and racked up four strikeouts in 1.2 innings. 

The heater wasn’t just loud on the radar gun; it missed bats. Seven whiffs on nine swings is the kind of ratio that makes you do a double-take, because it doesn’t feel like the Hancock we’ve gotten used to. For years, the conversation around him has lived in the land of “command, sequencing, weak contact, maybe he can be a back-end starter.” All fine. But when you’re a former first-rounder six years removed from the draft, “fine” doesn’t cut it anymore and it starts sounding like “replaceable.”

Mariners’ Emerson Hancock is throwing with edge now and the timing isn’t a coincidence

If he wants to hitch his wagon to throwing gas, why not? In 2026, velocity is the one thing that travels on days when your feel isn’t perfect.

However, “perfect” is exactly the part that matters in that appearance. The velo dipped after the first inning, and the command got spotty enough that he didn’t even make it through two full frames. That’s the lingering red flag with Hancock: the moment he loses his lane, at-bats can start feeling like work. Spring results don’t matter, but spring tells do. The tell here is that the better version of Hancock is real — and the frustrating version is still parked right next to it.

Hancock has just one minor league option left. If he doesn’t win a job — or at least make the team feel comfortable carrying him — the Mariners are going to hit that awkward point where sending him down is another step closer to a waiver/DFA conversation. And once you’re out of options, you’re not being “stashed,” you’re being exposed. 

His start to this spring matters because it shows a path. If Hancock can live 94–96 with intent, steal strikes early, and keep the inning from spiraling when the command wobbles, he can finally stop being a “what if” and start being a weapon the Mariners can actually plan around.

Promising start. Now comes the part he still hasn’t owned: stacking it.