Josh Hancock

From SoSH

Joshua Morgan Hancock (born April 11, 1978 in Cleveland, Mississippi; died April 29, 2007 in St. Louis, Missouri) is a former Boston Red Sox prospect who pitched in three games for the Sox. Hancock played for the St. Louis Cardinals before his untimely demise in 2007.

Contents 1 Overall Career 2 Trivia 3 Transactions 4 External Links

Overall Career

Hancock was born in Cleveland, Mississippi but attended high school in Vestavia, Alabama. He was drafted out of high school in 1996 by the Milwaukee Brewers but did not sign and decided to attend Auburn, although he is a livelong Alabama fan, the hated rival of Auburn. Hancock pitched just one season for the Auburn Tigers, appearing in only 13 games and was drafted in 1997 by the Red Sox with the team's fifth round pick.

Hancock spent the 1998 to 2001 seasons as a starting pitcher in the Red Sox minor league system. In 2002, after going 4-2 with a 3.45 ERA in eight starts for the Pawtucket Red Sox, Hancock made his major league debut with the Boston Red Sox on September 10, 2002, and would pitch just two more times for the team that season. Hancock would be traded that off-season by new general manager Theo Epstein for first baseman Jeremy Giambi.

Hancock spent the 2003 and 2004 seasons splitting time between the Philadelphia Phillies and the team's Triple A affiliate, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. In 2004 the 26 year old Hancock was traded to the Cincinnati Reds with shortstop Anderson Machado in exchange for reliever Todd Jones and outfielder Brad Correll. Hancock put together his best major league season in 2004 with a 5-1 record and a 4.45 ERA as a starter for the Reds. Hancock missed most of the 2005 seasons with a groin injury he suffered during spring training. He went 1-0 with a 1.93 ERA in 11 games for the Reds. He also apspent time at Triple-A Louisville, where he went 1-2 with a 5.93 ERA in 11 games, eight of which were starts. While in the minors, he missed time due to a recurrence of that groin injury and added elbow problems on top of it.

Hancock has had injury problems off and on during his career. He missed time in 2002 with a broken jaw and his 2003 season started late due to pelvic surgery that winter. Hancock was released by the Reds during spring training in 2006 as punishment for reporting to camp 17 pounds overweight. Hancock signed with the St. Louis Cardinals where he has found some success as a reliever. In 62 games, Hancock compiled a 3-3 record with a 4.09 ERA with 1 save in 77 innings.

Josh was killed early Sunday morning, April 29, 2007, when he crashed his SUV into the back of a tow truck parked in the left lane on Interstate 64 in St. Louis. He was pronounced dead at the scene at the age of 29.

Trivia

• On the day of the 2004 trade deadline, Hancock began the day with the Phillies, was traded to the Reds, and that night was the winning pitcher in a game against the Houston Astros, a suspended game that began while Hancock was still with the Phillies.
• Hancock is a livelong Alabama fan, but attended the university's hated rival, Auburn.
• While at Auburn, Hancock was a teammate of Atlanta Braves pitcher Tim Hudson.
• Hancock's brother Jon-Jon is the designated hitter for the University of Mississippi and is a major league prospect.
• Hancock, along with teammate Gary Bennett, were the only two players on the St. Louis Cardinals 25-man 2006 World Series roster that did not play in a game that series.

Transactions

• December 15, 2002: Traded by the Boston Red Sox to the Philadelphia Phillies for Jeremy Giambi.
• July 30, 2004: Traded by the Philadelphia Phillies with Andy Machado to the Cincinnati Reds for Todd Jones and Brad Correll.
• January 12, 2006: Released by the Cincinnati Reds.
• February 21, 2006: Signed as a Free Agent with the St. Louis Cardinals.

External Links

• Baseball-Reference.com - Career Statistics and Analysis
• Card's Mourn Passing of Hancock