Grafton, WI – The summer of 2017 was an eventful one for Chinooks alumni hoping to make it to the show. Zack Granite (Minnesota Twins), Andrew Stevenson (Washington Nationals), Harrison Bader (St. Louis Cardinals), and Brian Anderson (Miami Marlins) finally saw their opportunity come to play in the MLB. This week saw the first Chinooks alumni of 2018 get called up to the majors when Eric Hanhold (2013 roster) was activated by the New York Mets. He becomes the fifth player in Chinooks history to make a Major League Baseball Roster.
The right handed pitcher from Bartlett, Tennessee attended the University of Florida. During his time with Florida, Eric was sent to Lakeshore in the summer of 2013. He appeared in nine games for the team, six of which were starts. In forty innings of work, Eric was 3-1 with a 2.70 ERA. He recorded one save and finished his season with 27 strikeouts and 13 walks.
Hanhold would go on to be drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 6th round of the 2015 draft. During his first year in the minors, Eric played just one game with the Brewers rookie ball team in Arizona before heading to Appleton to join the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers where he appeared in ten games, seven of those starts. He would end the 2015 season with a 7.43 ERA.
Hanhold’s workload would slowly increase in 2016 as he was promoted to the Brewers high-A affiliate, the Brevard County Manatees. He would see action in 19 games, all which were starts, and end with a 2-12 record and a 4.81 ERA. The Manatees affiliate with the Brewers would end in 2017 seeing the organization begin a relationship with the Carolina Mudcats where Eric would spend all of 2017. Now acting as a relief pitcher, Hanhold would be appear in 30 games finishing with an impressive 8-3 record and lowering his ERA to 3.94.
His baseball career would dramatically change on September 12, 2017 when the Brewers traded Hanhold to the New York Mets as part of the Neil Walker trade. He would be placed with the Binghamton Rumble Ponies to begin 2018 which saw a stint of 17 relief appearances, also leading to Hanhold being able to lower his ERA to 2.84. He would get the call to Triple-A Las Vegas but shortly after had to be placed on the DL. After a quick rehab assisgnment with the GCL Mets and Brooklyn Cyclones, Eric rejoined the 51’s in Vegas until the Mets selected his contract on September 1st.
Since September 1st, Hanhold has made three relief appearances for the Mets, facing the Dodgers on the 4th and twice against the Phillies last week. He currently has a 7.71 ERA and will look to finish strong in the home stretch of the 2018 season. With New York well out of playoff contention, it is expected Hanhold will get plenty of opportunities to prove himself with the organization.
The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Now in its 25th anniversary season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, 200 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET) and Curtis Granderson (TOR). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.
