Rebekah Lajoie: From the Cape Cod League to San Diego
This article was written by Rebekah Lajoie
This article was published in Cape Cod Baseball League: From College Stars to Big League Futures (2026)
Rebekah Lajoie, 2021, MLB Liaison at Guv Fuller Field, Falmouth, texting scouts during games about player updates and team transactions. (Photo: Meghan Murphy)
When I was in the seventh grade, my dad gifted me Moneyball by Michael Lewis for Christmas. “There are a few swear words in there,” he said, “but that’s just how baseball is. The point of this book is greater than the f-bombs.” He was right. I read that book multiple times, imagining myself in that environment. Once I started imagining it, I couldn’t stop. Moneyball introduced me to baseball’s behind-the-scenes world and showed me that work could be both challenging and enjoyable.
I grew up playing softball starting around second grade. I never took to the local Taunton, Massachusetts, rec league and switched to soccer full time by fourth grade. Even then, baseball remained present through time spent with my dad and brother. My brother’s T-ball games were many of our family outings back then. My dad taught me to score baseball games watching the 2007 Red Sox on NESN. By that postseason, I knew a lot about every Red Sox player, and would have my fourth-grade teacher, Mr. Castro, quiz me on the starting rotation. After the Red Sox won the World Series, I felt an unexpected connection to the team, as if I had been a part of it.
I remained an avid Red Sox fan throughout my childhood, watching games after soccer practice whenever I could. I distinctly remember a postgame breakdown on Dustin Pedroia’s swing that completely captured my attention. Around that time, my father and brother became interested in the more technical side of the game. My brother began taking hitting lessons, and our family conversations would drift more often to his swing mechanics. They purchased The Science of Hitting, by Ted Williams, which later became the subject of my seventh-grade book-report project. After reading it, I attended every one of my brother’s hitting lessons.
Once a week we drove about an hour each way to work with a coach certified in Epstein Hitting, former MLB first baseman Mike Epstein’s hitting philosophy. At the time, Epstein Hitting was among the first instructional approaches to use video and motion-analysis software to teach a rotational swing. Through those lessons, I was introduced to a world of video analysis and data that I did not know existed.
That exposure reignited my desire to play softball. I dove into analytics to make up for the years I had missed and rebuilt my swing from the ground up. I focused on a rotationally sound swing, prioritizing sequencing and utilizing force up the kinetic chain. I played year-round and became especially drawn to the mechanical and analytical side of hitting. Throughout middle school and high school, I continued uncovering more of what existed behind the game, and my interest only deepened.
By high school, I knew I wanted to work in baseball in whatever capacity I could. My softball career continued at Taunton High School, where I played varsity and finished my senior year as an outfielder for the Tigers while competing in the state tournament. During that season, I committed to Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts, where I would continue my softball career. The summer after I graduated from high school, my grandmother, a Cape Cod native, mailed me a newspaper clipping about Katie Krall, the Hyannis Harbor Hawks’ first baseball operations intern. That article moved me. I applied to every Cape Cod Baseball League team in 2017 and was offered a Game Day Operations internship with the Orleans Firebirds for the summer of 2018.
My freshman year of college was difficult. I played only half the softball season after undergoing knee surgery in October. While it was disappointing to miss so many games, I was grateful to be able to remain close to the game, and the coming summer on the Cape kept me focused and optimistic. That summer was demanding. I worked at the Hyannis Chick-fil-A from 6 A.M. to 2 P.M. to pay rent, completed my summer softball workouts, and then took Route 6 to Orleans for 4:30 P.M., handling pregame setup, in-game responsibilities, and postgame breakdown and cleanup until around 11 P.M. The game-day role focused on fan engagement and park upkeep, with an emphasis on creating a positive experience for fans and players. Responsibilities included parking, the 50/50 raffle, postgame player meals, retail organization and sales, and the setup and cleanup of team meals. My routine repeated daily throughout the summer, and I loved each moment I spent at Eldredge Park.
That season taught me how much effort goes into operating a Cape League team on the business and fan experience side. My favorite part, however, was observing the major-league scouts seated behind home plate. I found myself noting when they took notes and which players drew their attention. I became increasingly curious about what they were seeing and how they evaluated talent. By the end of the summer, I knew I wanted to learn more about scouting, and I committed to returning to the Cape.
GM intern Rebekah Lajoie, 2019, at Guv Fuller Field, Falmouth. Driver Emily Buccigross is currently Assistant Athletic Trainer at UTexas. On the back of the golf cart is Mike Murray, Athletic Events Supervisor with New Balance, returning to Falmouth in summer 2026 as GM of the Falmouth Commodores. (Photo: Meghan Murphy)
In 2019 I accepted a general management internship with the Falmouth Commodores. The role was more baseball-focused, and my grandmother, who lives in Falmouth, offered me a place to stay. My days followed a familiar rhythm. I completed my college softball workouts early in the morning, worked at a retail shop on Main Street from 7 A.M. to noon, and arrived at the field by 2 P.M., often staying until around midnight. The effort required simply to stay afloat each summer on the Cape shaped my work ethic in ways few experiences could.
The general management internship exposed me to the baseball operations side of running a team. I kept team statistics and organized them for nightly fan handouts, assisted with team transactions, pitched in with laundry, coordinated player volunteer assignments, and helped with team budgeting. The 2019 season remains one of the most special experiences of my career. The Commodores that year were an exceptionally close-knit group of players, coaches, interns, and staff. The talent was undeniable: eight players drafted and three free agent signs in 2020, followed by 14 draftees in 2021, and two more in 2022. Being a part of that team solidified my ever-growing interest in the amateur side of baseball.
One of the most rewarding aspects of working in the Cape Cod Baseball League has been seeing the success of players I worked with during my summers on the Cape. Several have gone on to play in the major leagues, including JJ Bleday, Spencer Steer, Andrew Abbott, Kevin Kelly, Ben Casparius, Justin Wrobleski, Carmen Mlodzinski, Bryce Miller, and Tim Tawa. I remember tracking their metrics, taking notes behind home, and watching them refine their swings and pitching mechanics summer after summer. Watching these players develop and reach the highest level of baseball has been a highlight of my career and a reminder of the talent the league cultivates each summer.
I planned to return to Falmouth in 2020 for my third Cape League season, but the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the season. I moved to Jupiter, Florida, for a small stipend-based internship with Cressey Sports Performance and its summer league affiliate, the Collegiate League of the Palm Beaches. That experience was more technical and expanded my understanding of pitching and hitting metrics – how they are measured, what they represent, and how they inform scouting evaluations.
After completing my senior softball season at Wheaton College, graduating with degrees in economics, Latin, and business management, I applied to several MLB front-office internships but did not receive any offers. In 2021 I returned to the Cape for my third and final season, once again with Falmouth. That summer, I was offered the MLB Scout Liaison role. While the responsibility was intimidating, Commodores’ general manager Chris Fitzgerald and staff provided consistent support that made my transition smooth.
In that role, I sat behind home plate for every game – home and away – serving as a point of contact for scouts. I discussed players’ tool sets, scored every game to keep up on my notes in real time, and maintained statistical and metric leaderboards for reference. During that summer, I met scouts whose work continues to shape major-league rosters. On July 4, 2021, I spoke at length with a scout from the San Diego Padres. Our conversation began with life rather than baseball before turning to a detailed discussion of the roster. By the end of the game, I realized I had gone through every player without referencing my notes. The next day, he gave me his card and encouraged me to reach out after the summer season. He spoke about the importance of filling an organization with people who value communication and curiosity as much as evaluation, and that was how Padres baseball operated.
Later that summer, I sent him my résumé. It was forwarded to the Padres’ front office, leading to multiple interviews for a newly created role within their Sports Science department. The position combined everything I had learned – scouting, biomechanics, metric analysis, and data communication. I accepted a job offer and moved from Massachusetts to San Diego shortly after.
I have now completed four years with the Padres: three within Sports Science as an intern and department coordinator, and one as a full-time amateur scout with a technology and data focus. In this role, I travel all over the country supplementing scouting coverage where needed and collecting data to be used for evaluation in the amateur draft. I have contributed to the amateur draft each year and continue to build on the foundation formed during my time in the Cape Cod Baseball League.
The Cape Cod League prepared me for a career in professional baseball in ways I never could have anticipated. It strengthened my ability to communicate, sharpened my scouting and analytical skills, and connected me with some of the best people in the game. I owe much of my professional growth to those who invested in me during my summers on Cape Cod. To Elaine Brickman, thank you for giving me my first opportunity in Orleans. To Chris Fitzgerald, thank you for believing in my ability to contribute and grow. To Mike, Laura, Emily, Will, Meghan, the late Coach Trundy, and the rest of the 2019 Falmouth staff, thank you for a summer I will never forget. And finally, to the Cape Cod Baseball League – thank you for shaping the direction of my career, deepening my love for the game, and allowing me to be part of a place where the stars of tomorrow shine, long before the rest of the baseball world is watching.
REBEKAH LAJOIE is an amateur scout with the San Diego Padres specializing in technology and data. Originally from Taunton, Massachusetts, she played four years of collegiate softball at Wheaton College. While she currently resides in San Diego, she has family throughout Massachusetts, including on Cape Cod.