Former Ontario Blue Jays INF Brendan Lawson (Toronto, Ont.)

Name: INF Brendan Lawson

Hometown: Toronto, Ont.

Height/Weight: L-R

Bats/Throws: 6’ 3” 195 lbs.

Teams: Trenton Thunder (MLB Draft League), P27 (Lexington, SC)

Coach: Corey Warner

Committed: Florida.

Previous Teams: Junior National Team, Ontario Blue Jays, Leaside,

Previous Coaches: Greg Hamilton, Corey Eckstein, Tim Smith, Brandon Dhue.

Rankings: ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel writes Lawson is a fit for the Jays second round (59th, compensation pick) on July 19… Ranked 154th on ESPN’s top 154 (May 9) … 132nd on Baseball America’s combined list of top 500 high schoolers and collegians ... 155th on MLB Pipeline’s top 200 ... Listed 154th on Perfect Game’s top 500 high school and college combined list … Before that was 127th on BA prospects list ... Previously 47th on BA’s top prospect list ... Before that was 18th among high schoolers in North America … Listed No. 6 in North America for 2024 in 2022 (higher than first rounders Adam Loewen, Jeff Francis, Scott Thorman, Brett Lawrie, Phillippe Aumont or any other Canadians we can remember) ... Listed No. 1 in province for 2024 ... Ranked No. 1 player at his position for 2024 ... Listed 26th in North America in 2022 for 2024 ...

Attended: MLB Draft Combine, June 18-23 at Chase Field, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks, one of 319 draft prospects, invited, 193 collegiate players and 126 high schoolers.

Hobbies: Playing guitar. Plays songs by Led Zeppelin, the Rolling Stones, AC/DC, Greta Van Fleet.

2024 season with Trenton Thunder, Draft League _ Hit. 344 with one double, two RBIs and 12 walks, along with 10 strikeouts ... A .908 OPS in 10 games ... With P27 _ Competed at Perfect Game Academies Showcase ... Exit velocity clocked at 102 MPH in May … Competed at Perfect Game Academies Showcase at Truist Park in Atlanta … Exit velocity clocked at 102 MPH in May.

2023 season _ Was at East Coast Pro in Hoover, Ala. where he ran a 6.79 60 at the East Coast Pro ... Invited to Area Code Games at the University of San Diego ... National Showcase at Chase Field in Phoenix ... and All-American game in Seattle, as part of the all-star weekend.

2022 season with Ontario Blue Jays, Columbia Blue _ Competed at Perfect Game Underclass All American Games in San Diego ... Had sixth-ranked infield velocity of top 40 at Preseason HS Prospect Showcase in Sanford, Fla.

Honours

2024 season _ Selected Perfect Game/Rawlings First Team All-American … 2023 season with Ontario Blue Jays and Junior National Team _ Named to the Showcase Top Prospect Team at the National Showcase in Phoenix ... Made the all-tournament team at the WWBA 2024 Grads or 17U National Championship in Marietta, Ga. ... Earned Rawlings/Perfect Game Preseason Underclass All America All Region first Team honours for the Canada/Puerto Rico region … 2022 season with Ontario Blue Jays _ BCS Champion 16U Perfect Game Independence Showdown in Sanford, Fla. ... Earned All Tournament teams at the 16U PG Independence Showdown in Sanford, PG 16U BCS National Championship at Fort Myers and WWBA 2024 Grads or 16U National Championship in Marietta

Scouting report

Baseball America

School: P27 Academy, Lexington, SC

Age At Draft: 18.6

Lawson is the top-ranked Canadian prospect in the class, though the 6-foot-3, 205-pound shortstop will spend his 2024 spring season at P27 Academy in Lexington, S.C. Lawson has trended up over the past two seasons thanks to a promising blend of hitting ability and power that translates to games. He has a sweet left-handed swing with an unusually high handset that starts above his head before drawing them back to generate torque and transfer his weight with plenty of force. He drives his hands through the zone with above-average bat speed and does a nice job sequencing the moving parts to stay on time. He has extra-base power to all fields and while he is already quite strong, especially in his lower half, he could add more strength to his frame and grow into plus raw power. Lawson has solid defensive actions that could allow him to stick at shortstop—as well as above-average arm strength—but many scouts think he might wind up outgrowing the position and behind a better fit at third. Lawson is committed to Florida.

MLB Pipeline

AGE 18 B/T L-R HT/WT 6’ 3” 205 COMMITTED Florida

Logan Wagner moved to P27 Academy (Lexington, S.C.) for his senior season in 2022, then parlayed his bat into an over-slot $500,000 bonus from the Dodgers in the sixth round. Lawson hoped to chart a similar course after arriving from Canada, but he came down with a serious sinus infection in January that sapped his strength and swing and eventually required surgery. All that made him difficult to scout this spring, though he did return and performed well in a mid-May Perfect Game tournament.

Lawson is an advanced prep hitter with a disciplined approach and an unusual setup at the plate. He holds his hands above his head before starting his left-handed stroke, though that doesn’t stop him from barreling balls with regularity. Some evaluators think he’ll develop into a 20-homer threat, while others question his bat speed and think he has more fringy power.

With fringy speed and average arm strength, Lawson is unlikely to remain at shortstop in pro ball. The Florida recruit has good hands and can make some plays at short, but he’ll probably lose a step as he adds more muscle to his wiry 6-foot-3 frame. He projects as more of a third baseman or left fielder in the long run.

Perfect Game

(At Dorchester, Ont.)

“Brendan Lawson (2024, Toronto, Ont.) stole the show from a positional player perspective, showcasing a bevy of tools while also performing with the bat in a huge way. Lawson is a solidly-built 6-foot-3, 185 pounds, with good projection remaining on his frame along with a good bit of present strength there. A left-handed bat, Lawson won MVP of the game following a multi extra-base hit performance, and it’s easy to see the upside overall the more you watch him. He’s composed at the plate and does a good job staying balanced in spite of a bigger and more complex move, allowing both the barrel to lag really well in zone as well as his front side to really create leverage. The actions and hands are solid in the infield right now, and given that along with his athleticism, he should stay on the left side of the infield long term, whether that’s at short or third. He looked like a future star in this event, to say the least.”

_ -Brian Sakowski

154. Brendan Lawson, Ontario Blue Jays.

“Lawson was eligible for the 2023 draft despite being listed as a 2024 commit to Florida thanks to the way Canada does secondary education, and we’re very bullish on the upside here, obviously. He’s a physical left-handed hitting shortstop with big bat speed and power that he’s put on display against good pitching in showcase environments, and has the defensive tools to stay on the left side of the infield even if he outgrows shortstop. We’re betting on the upside here in a big way, even without the same volume of a data set that we have on other players of his profile. He’ll be playing in a strong CPBL all spring, so scouts will have plenty of opportunities to see him square off against good pitching prior to the draft.”

INF Brendan Lawson, 19th round (561st) – St. Louis Cardinals