BREWSTER - Twenty-four hours from the start of the Cape Cod Baseball League season, the players are ready for their opportunity in the summer spotlight. The Brewster Whitecaps start the season in Hyannis at 6 p.m. Saturday and open their home slate at Stony Brook Field the following day against Falmouth. Two of New England’s finest arms aim to start Brewster 2-0. For the first weekend of play, Charlie West and Mavrick Rizy will toe the rubber.

Storrs, Connecticut, is under 80 miles from West’s home in South Setauket, New York. Cape Cod is under 200. The Big East first-teamer fooled hitters all spring, accumulating 111 strikeouts across 87 1/3 innings pitched. West threw more than 90 pitches per game in almost every start this spring. His proximity to the Cape may improve transition time and give the lefty another edge against hitters traveling from across the country. While it is doubtful Whitecaps fans will see that kind of length Saturday, they can expect ultra-competitive pitching from a rising senior fighting for an MLB opportunity.

Throwing against Brewster a half inning later is Karsten Sweum. Gonzaga’s ace will open the Harbor Hawks season and defend his West Coast Conference Pitcher of the Year award against some of college baseball’s best athletes. The left-handed phenom takes the mound with the wind in his sails, but the Whitecaps are on track to deliver stormy seas to the Bulldogs’ No. 1.

Last season’s Brewster team MVP, Adam Magpoc, should be a tone-setter for the offense. The reigning CCBL stolen base champion could be the Whitecaps’ first run of the season, but he is not the only player with the potential to impact the contest at McKeon Park.

Power Four conference talent is present in spades on Brewster’s roster, but fans should still keep an eye out for mid-major stars like catcher Jacob Lee and first baseman Petey Craska.

Offense comes in waves out here on the sand dunes, but pitching wins CCBL titles. When the Whitecaps return to the Outer Cape, they will be working downhill behind a future star on the mound.

The home opener falls to Louisiana State University’s 6-foot-9, 251-pound Rizy. The right-hander comes to Brewster with a frame that intimidates, but his freshman season at LSU gives his size real magnitude. Rizy made a team-high 24 relief appearances for the Tigers, struck out 29 batters across 24 2/3 innings and held opponents to a .237 batting average. His best flashes came in major moments, including a scoreless inning against West Virginia in the NCAA Super Regional.

Rizy’s Massachusetts roots only tighten the connection. The Fiskdale native and Worcester Academy product was ranked as the top high school player in the state by Perfect Game before heading to Baton Rouge. He now returns to New England with SEC innings, postseason experience and a Cape League stage built to test his dominance.

The Cape drops hitters into wood bats, packed rotations and lineups full of players chasing the same draft-board improvement. With West in Hyannis and Rizy at Stony Brook Field, opening weekend should tell Whitecaps fans plenty about the performances they can expect this June.

Matt Ford-Wellman can be reached at mfordwellman.media@gmail.com and followed on X @MattFW_4