Athlete Of The Week: Jacob Lee

SOUTH YARMOUTH – Jacob Lee (Virginia Commonwealth) is a home run hitter.

That was true before he ever stepped foot on the Cape this summer. A rising junior, Lee’s 17 home runs his first year in collegiate ball set the Virginia Commonwealth’s all-time freshman record. He followed that by hitting 17 more home runs this past spring, becoming the school’s first player to hit that many homers in multiple years. Lee, a catcher, is already third on Virginia Commonwealth’s career home runs list.

Should it have been any surprise then that Lee showed up to play for the Brewster Whitecaps and proceeded to continue slamming baseballs over the fence? Maybe not. He’s been building the base for his slugger profile with weight training and nutrition since high school.

“I was able to have a more powerful swing when I was young — and able to mold it into I'm strong and I have a power swing,” Lee said.

Now, Lee is tied for second across the Cape League with six home runs. Last Friday against Orleans, he pounded a mammoth blast over the scoreboard in left field at Stony Brook Field. Later that same game, the Firebirds intentionally walked Lee with two outs and a runner on third, clearly respecting the hitting ability.

“He’s got some juice,” Brewster manager Jamie Shevchik said.

Lee has become a mainstay Whitecap this season, a .908 on-base plus slugging percentage in 26 games. He’s caught 16 of those and slotted in at designated hitter for the rest. Lee has “been the glue,” Shevchik said, someone who’s been here since the start and plans to still be playing on the last day of the season.

“Very rarely do you ever see that, but usually when you do, it's the type of kid that he is,” Shevchik said. “A guy comes out here from day one and stays till the end — that's a special, special kid, and he is a very special kid.”