ORLEANS, Mass. — New Whitecap Brendan Lawson (Florida) called July 1 “the best day of the year” after Tuesday’s game — and with everything that happened, who could blame him?

Maybe it was because D1Baseball named him a Second-Team Freshman All-American that morning. Or because he was making his long-awaited Cape League debut. Or maybe he’s just that pumped about the start of July.

All solid guesses. All wrong.

For Lawson, it was all about Canada Day. The Toronto native has long worn the maple leaf with pride. Back in high school, he suited up for Team Canada and starred on the Junior National Team during its tour with the Blue Jays — earning team MVP honors in 2022.

So sure, July 1 already held a special place in Lawson’s heart. But this year, he added a few more reasons to celebrate.

Long before he suited up in Brewster, Lawson was already making noise on a national stage. The left-handed slugger is fresh off a freshman campaign to remember at Florida. On a Gators squad that won 39 games, Lawson — just a freshman — logged the second-most at-bats on the team, trailing only senior Bobby Boser. He made every one of them count, hitting .317 with a .417 SLG, .939 OPS, 10 home runs and 61 RBIs — elite numbers at any level, let alone in the gauntlet that is the SEC.

Need a snapshot of his ceiling? Look no further than his 5-for-7, three-RBI performance in Florida’s NCAA Regional blowout win over Fairfield. The talent isn’t just obvious — it’s electric, and it's headed in one direction.

And his next stop? A summer in Brewster. Lawson made his Cape Cod debut Tuesday night against Orleans, the first pitstop in what figures to be a busy offseason.

According to head coach Jamie Shevchik, bringing Lawson aboard was a no-brainer — not just because of his ability, but because his Canadian roots meant he’d be around all summer.

“The joke that we had — Scott Grimes and I — because Grimes has a connection to Florida,” Shevchik said. “When we were about to take him, he said, ‘Hey, they want to offer us Lawson.’ And I said, ‘Yeah, 100%.’ I said, ‘The best thing about that is he’s Canadian, and he can’t go to Team USA.’”

Lawson joins a Brewster team that might feel a bit like a continuation of his Florida days — not just because of the winning, but because of the familiar faces around him. The current Whitecaps roster features two fellow Gators in Billy Barlow and Matthew Jenkins.

Had Lawson arrived just a day earlier, he would’ve reunited with four, including his good friend Blake Cyr — Brewster’s emotional spark plug both on and off the field.

Though Cyr had just wrapped up his time on the Cape, he made sure Lawson knew what he was walking into.

“(Cyr) just said everything’s a lot of fun,” Lawson said. “The team has a really cool culture, and the environment and coaches are great. I’m excited to get to know everyone better and just keep playing.”

Shevchik has long said that his strategy for integrating new players is simple: throw them into the fire. Get them in the lineup right away.

That’s exactly what he did with Lawson, who arrived on the Cape just two days prior and was immediately slotted in at third base and hitting seventh in a Brewster lineup that had scored just five runs total over its previous three games.

Lawson may not bring the same high-energy personality as his good friend Cyr, but his bat has the potential to be just as electrifying — and on Tuesday, Brewster got a full glimpse of what he can offer.

In his first plate appearance, Lawson worked a four-pitch walk — none of the pitches particularly close — reaching base to start his Cape career. But it was his next at-bat that truly hinted at what he could mean to this lineup. On a 2-1 pitch, he roped a single into right, moving Colin Priest (Clemson) to second. Carson Tinney (Texas) followed by ripping a double down the right-field line, and Josiah Ragsdale (Boston College) added an RBI single to bring Lawson home as part of a quick 3-0 Brewster lead.

Shevchik has noted lately that he’s not asking for .400 hitters like Ragsdale — that’s unrealistic. What he needs, he says, is a few guys to hit .250, put together good at-bats and help get the offense rolling again.

Well, that might be setting the bar too low for Lawson.

Lawson made hitting look effortless all night. In his third trip to the plate, he knocked his second single of the game — this one leading off the sixth. After a walk from Tinney, Ragsdale once again brought Lawson home with his second RBI single to make it 4-0. By the end of the frame, Lawson reached base three times and served as the driving force behind both of Brewster’s scoring rallies.

By that point, Lawson’s debut was already one to remember, delivering the steady production Shevchik has been craving. But with stars like Cyr already gone, Ragsdale possibly headed for the Draft and several bats still searching for their spark, Brewster will need even more moving forward.

And who better to deliver than Lawson?

In the top of the seventh, with the Whitecaps up 7–2, most players might have been content to coast to the finish. Not Lawson. He stepped in hunting a middle-middle fastball — exactly what he got — and didn’t miss. He unloaded on it, launching a no-doubt rocket to right field for his first Cape Cod League home run, and Brewster’s first long ball since June 19.

“I thought he was one of the most elite freshman hitters in the country,” Shevchik said. “I didn’t expect him to go 3-for-4 today. I thought there was gonna be a little bit of a honeymoon period for him. He’s gonna be electric… he’s gonna be a first-round pick at some point. I’m just happy that he’s on this side.”

It was a swing that didn’t just cap a debut — it turned heads. A no-doubt blast, a jolt to a Brewster lineup in need of one and maybe a sign of what’s to come. But while the buzz builds, Lawson kept his goals moving forward refreshingly simple: play good baseball, enjoy the ride and keep things light.

“Just keep stacking wins with the team,” Lawson said. “And for myself, it’s about sticking to my approach and just having fun — honestly, having as much fun as I can out there.”

Title photo credit: Casey Bayne.