PEORIA, Ariz. — In the Seattle Mariners 5-1 win against the Texas Rangers on Friday at Surprise Stadium in Surprise, Ariz., most of the attention was paid to the second professional start of 2025 first-round pick Kade Anderson.

The third overall pick put in three innings of quality work but another former first-round pitcher had his own solid day as well.

Right-hander Emerson Hancock pitched three innings of long relief behind Anderson.

The 2020 draft pick struck out four batters and allowed one earned run on three hits (one home run).

Hancock has had three outings this spring. He's fanned at least four batters in every one. In each of this last two appearances, he's pitched more than two innings and hasn't allowed more than one run.

The biggest takeaways from Hancock's last two outings has been the command he has across his entire arsenal. In his outing against the Rangers, all four of his strikeouts came with a different pitch.

"I think (his command) is important," Seattle manager Dan Wilson said after the game against Texas on Friday in Surprise. "And it's not just with one pitch. Having them all that he can command is helpful, especially his secondary stuff. When he's able to command that, throw strikes with it, he's going to get a lot of guys frozen on that heater."

"Command" might be the most critical word of 2026 for the former Georgia Bulldog.

Hancock has entered the last two years as the "No. 6" pitcher in the starting rotation. He's been on the opening day roster due to injuries suffered by Bryan Woo (2024) and George Kirby (2025) that kept them on the injured list to begin those respective years.

Last season, with the emergence of Logan Evans, who made 15 starts in his first major league season, the Mariners transitioned Hancock to the bullpen late in the season. He finished '25 with a 4.90 ERA and struck out 64 batters in 90 innings pitched across 22 appearances (16 starts).

Rather than take it as a demotion, Hancock showed off another level to his arsenal that was rare in his time as a starter. His fastball velocity spiked into the upper 90s and he implemented a sweeper.

Hancock's last month, which was almost exclusively out of the bullpen, was a fruitful one. He had a 1.42 ERA across seven outings (one start) and struck out 11 batters in 12.2 innings pitched.

This spring, he's focused on refining his repertoire and it's yielded the aforementioned positive results.

"I think the biggest thing is understanding that was what I really needed to work on in the offseason," Hancock said in an interview Saturday at the Peoria Sports Complex. "I think it started with just training that as much as you could and train it every day. That way, when you go out to the game, you can just execute. Pitch with a little bit of freedom. I think a little bit is just trying not to do too much."

Hancock still doesn't know what his role on the team will be in 2026. Evans is out for the season after undergoing elbow surgery and Anderson and Ryan Sloan, both top 100 prospects, still haven't pitched even in Double-A (Anderson hasn't pitched a minor league game, period).

However, the value Hancock brings as a potential long-relief hurler is impossible to ignore. If he can maintain the level of consistency with his arsenal that has eluded him in his major league career, that value grows higher.

"I think it's huge," Hancock said. " ... It's like, 'hey, I have many options.' When we get to two strikes, the playbook's open in a way. I can execute many different ways. It's been nice to be able to throw a (four-seam fastball) at the top, get a chase on a sweeper, get a slider. We just want to keep building on those things."

Whatever role Hancock has this year, it won't be one he's unprepared for. He's been the on-call starter for multiple years now.

He could be a starter, he could be a reliever. If Hancock's spring bleeds into the summer and fall, Seattle will benefit either way.

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