Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski Janice (Kline) Lawson (first row, center) and members of her family from the area watch her son, Cortland Lawson, play for the Harrisburg Senators against the Altoona Curve at PNG Field on Friday night.

When the Harrisburg Senators’ Cortland Lawson steps on the field at PNG Field, he does so to cheers unbeknownst to nearly all Curve opponents.

That’s because those cheers come from the dozens of family members he has at the ballpark cheering on him.

Lawson’s mother, Janice (Kline) Lawson, like much of her family, hails from Hastings in Cambria County, just a short jaunt from the ballpark in Altoona.

While Lawson’s name isn’t familiar since he didn’t grow up here, his mother and late father, Randy, made it a yearly tradition to trek to Central Pennsylvania from Reston, Va., to make sure the younger Lawson knew his roots.

“It’s kind of interesting to watch my son actually have an address in Pennsylvania, because I left there in (19)79 when I went to college at Slippery Rock, and then I was going to Ocean City, Md., every summer,” Janice said. “I really never went back there to live, but I go back all the time because that’s where all of my family is, obviously. I’m there numerous, numerous times a year so for me, it’s been really fun.”

Cortland was drafted by the Washington Nationals in the 14th round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of the University of Tennessee.

He began his career in the Nationals’ organization in Low-A Fredericksburg. That’s when tragedy struck for the Lawson family as his father had a massive heart attack and passed away.

That happening, and it coinciding with the start of Lawson’s professional journey, helped bring him and his family closer.

“It’s really pretty cool. Cortland had a rough time, because when he got drafted his junior year of college and started playing in Fredericksburg, his father had a massive heart attack and passed away,” Janice recalled. “He got off to a rough start in that sense, because his dad was his biggest mentor, and his dad coached him in travel ball and spent so much time with him.”

In stepped his uncles and older cousins, who helped fill the void.

“My uncles and all my older cousins, too, they all kind of shaped who I was along with obviously my father and my mom and my older brother, but they kind of shaped me who I was,” Cortland said before Thursday’s game against the Curve. “They toughened me up in some areas, and for them to come and be able to watch me play, it just means everything.”

Lawson’s family hasn’t had far to go in any of his stops within the organization as they’ve all been relatively close to either family in Pennsylvania or Virginia.

“It means the world to me,” Cortland said. “All three affiliates that I’ve been to so far in the organization have been just under two hours from home, so it’s been really nice for my mom and just all my family just to be able to come whenever they want to.”

That’s a luxury not afforded to many minor leaguers who spend most of their journeys playing away from home and the comfort of their families.

“It’s nice to be close to home so I never really feel like I’m homesick or just kind of away from home and missing things,” Cortland said. “It is really nice to be able to be this close and be able to have my family be with me whenever — whenever they’re in town.”

That comfort and familiarity have helped Cortland through some of his darkest times as a professional and helped him grow both on and off the field as he works his way toward his dream of becoming a Major League Baseball player.

“Being around family means everything to me,” Cortland said. “It’s one of the things that just keeps me going when things kind of get tough to know that I have a really strong and big support system because it is a big family. And it’s just the love and support that they show me that motivates me to keep pursuing and working as hard as I can to get to where I want to be.”

As for Janice, who has watched Cortland’s career blossom since he started playing in little league, his spending time playing in front of family is a great reminder of how much family means.

“I’m just forever indebted to my family, because they really stepped up to the plate after my husband passed away,” Janice said. “My brothers took a big role in following his career and making sure that he had people there that loved him and supported him. And so that has always meant a lot to me.”

Cortland’s uncles and cousins as well as his mom and aunt — who was just released from the hospital — were all expected to be in Altoona to see him play for the Senators this weekend.

It’s a special opportunity for Janice and her family to come together again in an area they consider a home away from home.

“It is heartwarming to have him playing in Pennsylvania, surrounded by good, hard-working, kind people,” Janice said.

While Cortland’s professional journey is far from over, it is certain his family will be there supporting him and cheering him on louder and prouder with each new level.