Brett Lawrie facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Brett Lawrie |
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Lawrie with the White Sox in 2016
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| Third baseman / Second baseman | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Born: January 18, 1990 Langley, British Columbia, Canada |
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| debut | ||||||||||||||||||||
| August 5, 2011, for the Toronto Blue Jays | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Last appearance | ||||||||||||||||||||
| July 21, 2016, for the Chicago White Sox | ||||||||||||||||||||
| MLB statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting average | .261 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Home runs | 71 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Runs batted in | 253 | |||||||||||||||||||
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Medals
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Brett Russell Lawrie, born on January 18, 1990, is a Canadian former professional baseball player. He was a talented third baseman who also played second base. Brett played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for teams like the Toronto Blue Jays, Oakland Athletics, and Chicago White Sox.
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Early Baseball Career
Brett Lawrie started playing baseball in high school. He played for the Langley Blaze team. In the 2008 Major League Baseball draft, the Milwaukee Brewers picked him as the 16th player overall. This was a very high pick for a Canadian player.
Playing Professionally
Milwaukee Brewers Team
When Brett Lawrie first started playing professionally, he was a catcher. But the Brewers team moved him to second base. He played for the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers in 2009. He was even chosen to play in the MLB All-Star Futures Game twice! This game features top young players.
In 2010, Brett had a great season with the Huntsville Stars. He hit .285, which is a good average. He also hit eight home runs and stole 30 bases. He was named an All-Star for his league.
Toronto Blue Jays Team
Many people thought Brett was one of the Brewers' best young players. In December 2010, he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays. The Blue Jays decided to move Brett to third base.
Brett had some injuries during his time with the Blue Jays. In May 2011, he broke a finger after being hit by a pitch. He had to miss a few weeks of games.
On August 4, 2011, Brett Lawrie was called up to play for the Toronto Blue Jays. This was his big debut in Major League Baseball! In his very first game, he got a hit and an RBI. A few games later, he hit his first career home run.
Brett also hit his first grand slam in August 2011. This is when a player hits a home run with all three bases loaded. He also hit his first triple and stole his first base. On September 5, he hit a "walk-off" home run. This means his home run won the game for his team in the final inning.
Brett's first season ended early because he broke a finger again. He finished his first MLB season with a .293 batting average. He also had nine home runs and 25 RBIs.
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In May 2012, Brett hit another game-winning walk-off home run. This helped the Blue Jays win a close game against the Texas Rangers. Later that month, he was ejected from a game after disagreeing with an umpire's calls. He was suspended for four games. In November 2012, Brett won an award for his excellent defense at third base.
Brett started the 2013 season on the disabled list due to an injury. He returned in April. In May, he sprained his ankle and had to miss more games. He worked hard to recover and played both second and third base for the Blue Jays that year. He finished the 2013 season with 11 home runs and 46 RBIs.
In 2014, Brett Lawrie was featured on the cover of the Canadian version of the video game MLB 14: The Show. He hit his second career grand slam in April 2014. He continued to hit home runs, setting a new career high with 12 that season. However, he was injured again in June when a pitch hit his hand, causing a broken finger. He also had an oblique muscle strain later that year. These injuries limited him to only 70 games in 2014.
Oakland Athletics Team
On November 28, 2014, Brett Lawrie was traded to the Oakland Athletics. He played 149 games for the Athletics in 2015, which was a career high for him. He hit 16 home runs and had 60 RBIs that season.
Chicago White Sox Team
In December 2015, Brett Lawrie was traded to the Chicago White Sox. With the White Sox, he mostly played second base and also served as a designated hitter. He played 94 games for the team in 2016. However, he left a game in July due to a leg injury. This injury kept him from playing for the rest of the season.
Brett signed a contract for the 2017 season but was released by the White Sox in March 2017.
Return to the Brewers
After not playing in 2017 and 2018, Brett Lawrie signed a minor league contract with the Milwaukee Brewers in February 2019. However, he was released later that year without playing any games for them.
Playing for Canada
Brett Lawrie has proudly represented Canada in international baseball tournaments.
He was part of the Canadian Junior National Team in the 2008 World Junior Baseball Championship. He was the best hitter in that tournament, with a .469 batting average, three home runs, and 16 RBIs. He also played for Canada at the 2008 Summer Olympics.
Brett also played for Canada in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. He was named to Canada's 2013 World Baseball Classic team as well. However, he got a rib injury before the tournament started and could not play in any games.
Personal Life
Brett Lawrie was engaged to soccer player Sydney Leroux in 2010. They later ended their engagement. In 2015, he became engaged to model Dana Long, and they got married on his birthday. In 2018, they announced they were expecting their first child.
Brett's sister, Danielle Lawrie, is also a talented athlete. She is an Olympic softball pitcher for Canada. After retiring from baseball, Brett Lawrie has been involved in promoting golf products.
