Brewster Whitecaps 2022 Cape Cod League Preview

The outfield group is the standout group on the present iteration of the Whitecaps roster, and an area Shevchik believes is a great strength. The core includes Rutgers’ Ryan Lasko, Northeastern’s Mike Sirota, slugger Cameron Leary of Boston College and Oregon’s Colby Shade. 

The infield group, a major strength for Brewster historically, is highlighted by the return of Central Florida’s Alex Freeland and versatile Vanderbilt freshman standout Davis Diaz. Parks Harber of Georgia and Ryan Targac of Texas A&M give the Whitecaps some thump in the lineup. 

The pitching corps, as with all Cape rosters at this point in the preseason, is still very much in flux. For example, how far Louisville or Auburn go in the super regionals will dictate how soon potential quality pitchers like Auburn’s Chase Allsup and the Louisville duo of Riley Phillips and Carson Liggett arrive to Stony Brook.

There’s also a handful of draft-eligible pitchers in the returning Rutgers duo of Brian Fitzpatrick and lefthander Dale Stanavich, as well as several others including Virginia Tech’s Griffin Green, Notre Dame’s Liam Simon and Campbell’s Ryan Chasse. All of those pitchers could potentially sign with a professional club in July. The fluid nature of the July draft could lead to Brewster’s staff experiencing significant augmentation between opening day and the third week of July. 

On paper, at least names like Florida State’s Jackson Nezuh, Wake Forest’s Teddy McGraw, Vanderbilt’s Hunter Owen and Campbell’s Cade Kuehler provide the Whitecaps with a core of 2023 draft-eligible pitchers that could all contribute. 

Home Park: Stony Brook (Built: 2006): Imagine a baseball park tucked behind your middle school. Now pretend you grew up in the quaint beach town of Brewster, Mass. That park is Stony Brook. It’s as barebones as you’ll get. The scouting section behind home plate is an 8-foot warped wooden bench with the broadcast booth directly behind it. There are metal bleachers that line the baselines but limited capacity seating compared to other Cape parks. Despite all this, the atmosphere at Stony Brook on game day is as good as any on the Cape. Fans pack in for the early 5 p.m. start times, as Brewster, like Cotuit and Yarmouth-Dennis, does not have lights. The leafy, wooded backdrop and tucked-away nature of the Whitecaps home park gives it a feel unique to Cape baseball and Brewster itself. 

Manager: Jamie Shevchik

Last Cape Cod League Championship: 2021

Hitters To Know

Parks Harber, 1B/3B Georgia (2023 Eligible): Harbor is a righthanded-hitting corner infielder with above-average bat-to-ball skills and power. While Harber looks to put the ball in play, he doesn’t expand the zone often and shows a knack for making hard contact throughout the zone. Harber hit .307/.365/.528 with 13 home runs for the Bulldogs, while seeing time at both first and third base. He should be a valuable player in the Whitecaps lineup this summer, with the ability to drive in runs and play multiple positions in the dirt. 

Ryan Lasko, OF Rutgers (2023 Eligible): There’s a very strong chance that Lasko earns an invite to camp for Team USA, but if he does end up on the Cape, even for a few weeks, he could be one of the annual early season Collegiate National Team visitors. In past years, players like Andrew Vaughn, Spencer Torkelson, Bryson Stott, Brooks Lee and Gavin Cross have spent a few weeks on the Cape prior to shipping off to Team USA camp. Lasko hit .349/.431/.643 with 16 home runs and 13 stolen bases this spring for Rutgers while playing an excellent center field. He is certainly a player to watch this summer.  

Ryan Targac, 2B/3B Texas A&M (2023 Eligible): Targac is a switch-hitting slugger who spent time at first base, second base, third base and the outfield corners over the last two seasons with the Aggies. He brings a unique level of versatility to the Whitecaps lineup with switch-hitting power and the ability to play four to five different positions in a pinch. His offensive profile is fairly three-true outcome-based, as he swings and misses at a high rate. On the other hand, he knows how to work deep into counts, get on-base and punish mistakes. If he shows further progression with his bat-to-ball skills this summer Targac could be a star for Brewster. 

Pitchers To Know

Cade Kuehler, RHP, Campbell (2023 Eligible): The sophomore righthander had a great season for Campbell, striking out 111 batters over 84 innings. He tops out at 96-97 mph on his fastball, sitting 93-95 mph regularly, with a lot of late life and riding action. He pairs his fastball with a trio of secondaries in a mid-80 slider, a low-80s curveball and a changeup with 9-10 mph of velocity separation off of his fastball. After throwing a lot of innings this spring he’s likely to have some innings restrictions but could still appear for a few weeks.

Chase Allsup, RHP, Auburn (2024 Eligible): There are certainly some questions around Allsup’s availability the deeper Auburn advances in postseason play. If Allsup does make his way to Brewster this summer he’s arguably one of the most electric pitchers on the staff. His fastball sits 94-96 mph with late giddy-up and explosiveness at the plate. He mixes in a slider and curveball combination as his primary secondaries. The slider has a sweepy shape while the curveball is a two-plane breaking ball with more depth. Still two years out from his draft summer, Allsup didn’t pitch a tremendous amount of innings his freshman season. 

Teddy McGraw, RHP, Wake Forest (2023 Eligible): A potential candidate for the Collegiate National Team, if McGraw does not receive an invite he could be one of the more exciting arms this summer. The righthander made seven appearances for the Whitecaps, including six starts totaling 27 innings. McGraw features a mid-90s sinker and an outrageous sweeping slider with spin rates in the 2,700 rpm range and over a foot of sweep. When McGraw is on, he’ll drive ground balls in bunches and generate whiffs. Other times he can struggle with command and lose feel for the zone. With velocity and a signature high-spin breaking ball, McGraw has the ability to dominate for stretches in entertaining fashion. 

Sleeper: Mike Sirota, OF, Northeastern (2024 Eligible): Drafted by the Dodgers last July out of the Connecticut prep ranks, Sirota did not sign and instead honored his commitment to Northeastern. There he starred for the Huskies, hitting .326/.411/.511 with four home runs and 10 steals over 37 games. His combination of contact, power and plate discipline make him dangerous at the plate while his athleticism and twitch allow him to impact the game in the outfield and on the basepaths. Sirota is a five-tool player growing into his long, lean frame.