Justin David Hancock (born October 28, 1990) is an American

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

coach and former

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

, who is the current pitching coach of the Indiana State Syacamores. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) for the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

and in

Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation ...

(NPB) for the

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters The are a Japanese professional baseball team based in Kitahiroshima, Hokkaidō. They compete in the Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball, playing the majority of their home games at ES CON Field Hokkaido. The Fighters also host a ...

Career

Amateur career

Before playing professionally, Hancock attended

Defiance High School Defiance High School (DHS) is a State school, public Secondary school, high school in Defiance, Ohio, Defiance, Ohio, United States. It was established in 1970 and is part of the Defiance City Schools district. Ohio High School Athletic Associat ...

Defiance, Ohio Defiance is a city in and the county seat of Defiance County, Ohio, United States, about southwest of Toledo, Ohio, Toledo and northeast of Fort Wayne, Indiana, in Ohio's northwestern corner. The population was 16,494 at the 2010 United State ...

. He then attended

Lincoln Trail College Lincoln Trail College is a public community college in Robinson, Illinois. The college was founded in 1969 and is a member of the Illinois Eastern Community Colleges organization. Academics The college offers career preparation programs as well ...

, where he was named All-Great Rivers Athletic Conference in 2011. His

fastball The fastball is the most common type of pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. "Power pitchers," such as former American major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, rely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit, and have thro ...

has been clocked at .

San Diego Padres

The

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...

selected Hancock in the ninth round of the

2011 Major League Baseball draft The 2011 Major League Baseball draft was held from June 6 through June 8, 2011, from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. The Pittsburgh Pirates selected Gerrit Cole out of the University of California, Los Angeles, with the first ...

, and he signed for a bonus of $100,000. After going 0–3 with a 7.09

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

(ERA) to begin his career, Hancock posted a 3.30 ERA in 28 games (16 starts) between the

Eugene Emeralds The Eugene Emeralds (nicknamed the Ems) are a Minor League Baseball team in the northwest United States, based in Eugene, Oregon. The Emeralds are members of the Northwest League and are affiliated with the San Francisco Giants. Eugene plays their ...

and

Fort Wayne TinCaps The Fort Wayne TinCaps are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. They are located in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and play their home games at Parkview Field. They won their lone Midwest Le ...

in 2012. In 2013, he was 8–8 with a 3.38 mark in 26 starts between Fort Wayne and the

Lake Elsinore Storm The Lake Elsinore Storm are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. The Storm plays their home games at Lake Elsinore Diamond (Pete Lehr Field), which opened in 1994; the park se ...

. While with Fort Wayne, he went 5–1 with a 1.73. In 2014, he went 3–2 with a 3.92 ERA in 15 games (14 starts) for the

AZL Padres The Arizona Complex League Padres are a Rookie-level affiliate of the San Diego Padres, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Peoria Sports Complex in Peoria, Arizona, which is also the ...

and

San Antonio Missions The San Antonio Missions are a Minor League Baseball team of the Texas League and the Double-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. They are located in San Antonio, Texas, and are named for the Spanish missions around which the city was founded. ...

. He was sent to pitch in the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fill ...

following the 2014 campaign.

Chicago Cubs

In 2017, the Padres traded Hancock to the

for Matt Szczur. The Cubs promoted him to the major leagues and he made his debut on May 9, 2018. He was non-tendered and became a free agent on November 30, 2018.

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters

On December 5, 2018, Hancock signed a one-year contract with the

(NPB) for an estimated ¥70 million. On October 11, 2019, Fighters announced that team had not signed with Hancock for next season. On October 18, 2019, he become free agent.

Coaching career

In July 2021, Hancock joined the Indiana State baseball program as an assistant coach; in his role, he will work primarily with Sycamore pitchers.

Personal life

Hancock is married to Tessa, a former college women's basketball player.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hancock, Justin 1990 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Japan Arizona League Padres players Baseball players from Ohio Chicago Cubs players El Paso Chihuahuas players Eugene Emeralds players Fort Wayne TinCaps players Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters players Indiana State Sycamores baseball coaches Iowa Cubs players Lake Elsinore Storm players Major League Baseball pitchers Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers People from Defiance, Ohio San Antonio Missions players Surprise Saguaros players Tennessee Smokies players Lincoln Trail Statesmen baseball players