The whole deal with Emerson Hancock’s fastball

Sidespin, more like Diedspin ESPN Emerson Hancock is the highest-picked pitching prospect the Mariners have snagged in nearly a decade, and he is a doozy. Logan Gilbert and George Kirby have a multitude of exceptional characteristics, to say nothing of the many pitchers behind them in Seattle’s system, but in picking at No. 6 overall the Mariners were awarded a chance at a dominant college player with present characteristics in line with MLB’s top-tier pitchers. When 94-95 is a low-stress baseline for a pitcher, they have the capacity to dominate a game every time they take the mound, and that’s exactly what Seattle thinks Hancock has the potential to do for years to come. Still, there’s been one consistent area of concern with that fastball: it gets hit more than it should.

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