Michigan State University Athletics
Photo by: Matthew Mitchell/MSU Athletic Communications
Bryce Kelley Feature: Steady, Speedy And Smart
5/30/2021 10:17:00 AM | Baseball
Spartan senior closes out career this weekend, but leaves with school records and many memories in tow.
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Michigan State baseball outfielder Bryce Kelley, like most seniors playing 2020 winter and spring sports, assumed his college career was over when the COVID-19 pandemic canceled their seasons. It was a heart-breaking end to his Spartans career, but he was prepared to accept it and move on.
He was ready start a new job in Indianapolis, and be with then-girlfriend, and now fiancée.
Kelley's life plans were upended, again, when the NCAA granted an extra year of eligibility to winter and spring athletes affected by the pandemic. He had the option to return to MSU, but the question was, what to do about his career?
His heart made the decision. Kelley return East Lansing, for his final year, and is finishing up a well-decorated career, including setting the Michigan State career record for stolen bases this season, after already holding the single-season record from his sophomore season of 2018. He is getting married this summer. After earning his bachelor's degree in supply chain management last year, is on the verge of completing his master's in finance, and recently earned his fourth Academic All-Big Ten accolade of his MSU career, before starting a new job with a different employer in his hometown of Grand Rapids.
"I wasn't really seriously considering coming back for quite some time," Kelley said. "I reached out to my would-have-been my employer and just kind of explained everything to him. I asked him if there was any way if I made myself more useful to him and get a master's at some point, that would allow me to do this and postpone for a year. He said, 'You really put things in perspective for me', and encouraged me and advised me to come back, which was awesome of him to do."
On the diamond, Kelley had a solid 2021 season, and while it his ups and downs were matched by the team's ups and downs, he was a team captain and a leader on the team, as well as a role model and mentor for his younger teammates. His overall mentality and willingness to help teammates sets him apart and sets an example for younger players.
"He's played a lot of baseball, so he knows a lot about the game," Michigan State head coach Jake Boss Jr. said. "It's really been kind of fun the last couple years to see him pull a couple guys aside in the dugout and say, 'Hey listen this is kind of what's happening', and that type of thing. He's kind of become an extension of the coaching staff."
Along with being an extension of the coaching staff, Kelley has had his own success as a player on the diamond.
Kelley broke the Michigan State record for stolen bases on April 11, vs. Purdue, stealing third base of MSU's 5-2 win over the Boilermakers, for the record-setting number 80, topping Anthony Cheky's record of 79 from 2012-15. After swiping number 80, Kelley was congratulated by third base coach Graham Sikes, and presented the record setting base by a member of the MSU Facilities grounds crew in a special presentation, while the small crowd of family of the student-athletes gave Kelley a standing ovation.
Kelley already owns the Michigan State record for stolen bases in a season, and the career total was yet another accolade added to his resume.
"A lot of people joked around a lot and would say, 'You only came back because you wanted to break that record', and in that sense, it had to be on my mind," Kelley said. "For me, that never really crossed my mind until really right before the season when that talk started to build up again.
"If I can steal a base and get us closer to scoring a run, helping us win the game, that's really what it comes down to. If I broke the record, that's awesome, that's something I'd definitely be proud of, but at the same time it wasn't at the forefront of my mind."
In the game that he broke the record, he reached on a walk, then moved to second on a groundout, before swiping third for the record.
"It feels really good, I'm really relieved kind of on two levels," Kelley said after breaking the record. "One, I'm really proud of what I accomplished, it's something I never would have really dreamed of here, but on a second level I'm just kind of relieved it's over, glad we can kind of move on from this and start winning some games here."
Kelley's strength lies in being a student of the game - every time he plays. He said there are a lot of players on the team with more raw talent, but his edge comes from a mental aspect. He picks the right spots to steal bases, based on things he sees from the pitcher, catcher, and other players and points it out to his teammates to make the teammates around him better.
Boss knew Kelley had the potential to be a great base runner and steal bases before he even got to Michigan State. Boss jokingly said he'd be lying if he said he expected Kelley to set stolen base records.
"That goes all the way back to high school when we recruited him, we knew he could do a lot of different things, he's a really dynamic player," Boss said. "Bryce bought in, he's got a great feel for the game, he's got a great knack for picking the right situations to go steal a base, maybe the right count or the right pitch, and he studies pitch patterns in the dugout during the game. He's got the green light to go as he knows the right situations, and I trust him. I've only giving him the steal sign less than a handful of times, the rest has been all him. I think he's really locked in and he gives himself the best opportunity to steal base. I think it's well deserved and I'm happy for him getting the record."
The stolen base record is well-deserved and well-recognized by Boss, and the Spartans.
"Bryce Kelley is as steady as they come," MSU head coach Jake Boss Jr. said. "I told our guys after the game, you think about setting a school record, and you know it sounds good but if you really dig into it, we've been playing baseball here for 137 years, and so for anybody to set any kind of school record, I think is a really, really monumental achievement and Bryce has earned. I think he's one of the smartest players I think that we've ever coached here, we just kind of get out of the way and let him do his thing. He's obviously very, very good at it. I'm just really happy for him and very proud of him."
Kelley's best contribution to his team may come off the field.
"My teammates joke about this all the time; one of my teammates said, 'We could be losing by 15 runs or winning by 15 and if we looked at you we'd never be able to tell'," Kelley said. "Whether we're up big or it's tight or something like that, others being able to look toward me and see that it's not the end of the world whatever is going on. Focusing on what you can do on that pitch at that time, is definitely something I do well."
Kelley's choice to make a tough situation last spring turn into a positive is a big deal. He could have been down about the end of his MSU career, but instead, always searched for the best opportunities for his life.
"I think my employer and kind of everyone I talked to put things in perspective and changed the way that I look around and appreciate things more from a baseball perspective," Kelley said. "I was kind of guilty the first couple years. Life was passing me by pretty quick and there's a lot of things coming at you with school, baseball, social life, all that kind of stuff. It just put that in perspective that I'm going to be working 30, 35 years after graduation.
"Why not play baseball one more year and have some fun and spend some more time with my teammates? That was kind of the driving factor behind all this."
And what a drive it has been for Kelley as he closes out his Spartan career this weekend, but leaves with school records and many memories in tow.
Kelley and his fellow Spartans play the final game of the 2021 season on Sunday with a 1:05 p.m. first pitch.
Sunday is MSU's Senior Day, as the Spartans will honor their seven senior players: Sam Benschoter, Trevor Hopman, Bryce Kelley, Andrew Morrow, Jarret Olson, Bailey Peterson and Joe Stewart, along with senior manager Scott Newhard, in addition to 2020 seniors: Caleb Sleeman, Danny Gieselman and Justin Antoncic, in a pre-game ceremony.
The weekend schedule is subject to change based on weather.
Along with any schedule updates, fans can follow the games with links for live stats, live audio (when available) and live streaming from Big Ten Network+ at MSUSpartans.com.
He was ready start a new job in Indianapolis, and be with then-girlfriend, and now fiancée.
Kelley's life plans were upended, again, when the NCAA granted an extra year of eligibility to winter and spring athletes affected by the pandemic. He had the option to return to MSU, but the question was, what to do about his career?
His heart made the decision. Kelley return East Lansing, for his final year, and is finishing up a well-decorated career, including setting the Michigan State career record for stolen bases this season, after already holding the single-season record from his sophomore season of 2018. He is getting married this summer. After earning his bachelor's degree in supply chain management last year, is on the verge of completing his master's in finance, and recently earned his fourth Academic All-Big Ten accolade of his MSU career, before starting a new job with a different employer in his hometown of Grand Rapids.
"I wasn't really seriously considering coming back for quite some time," Kelley said. "I reached out to my would-have-been my employer and just kind of explained everything to him. I asked him if there was any way if I made myself more useful to him and get a master's at some point, that would allow me to do this and postpone for a year. He said, 'You really put things in perspective for me', and encouraged me and advised me to come back, which was awesome of him to do."
On the diamond, Kelley had a solid 2021 season, and while it his ups and downs were matched by the team's ups and downs, he was a team captain and a leader on the team, as well as a role model and mentor for his younger teammates. His overall mentality and willingness to help teammates sets him apart and sets an example for younger players.
"He's played a lot of baseball, so he knows a lot about the game," Michigan State head coach Jake Boss Jr. said. "It's really been kind of fun the last couple years to see him pull a couple guys aside in the dugout and say, 'Hey listen this is kind of what's happening', and that type of thing. He's kind of become an extension of the coaching staff."
Along with being an extension of the coaching staff, Kelley has had his own success as a player on the diamond.
Kelley broke the Michigan State record for stolen bases on April 11, vs. Purdue, stealing third base of MSU's 5-2 win over the Boilermakers, for the record-setting number 80, topping Anthony Cheky's record of 79 from 2012-15. After swiping number 80, Kelley was congratulated by third base coach Graham Sikes, and presented the record setting base by a member of the MSU Facilities grounds crew in a special presentation, while the small crowd of family of the student-athletes gave Kelley a standing ovation.
There's a new STOLEN BASE KING👑 in Michigan State baseball lore!!
— Michigan State Baseball (@statebaseball) April 11, 2021
Bryce Kelley just stole 3rd for his 80th career stolen base, breaking Anthony Cheky's record of 79 from 2012-15.
Congrats Bryce!!
⚾️#GoGreen | #StolenBaseKingKelley | @Bk14Bryce pic.twitter.com/rDUMw1GKU8
Kelley already owns the Michigan State record for stolen bases in a season, and the career total was yet another accolade added to his resume.
"A lot of people joked around a lot and would say, 'You only came back because you wanted to break that record', and in that sense, it had to be on my mind," Kelley said. "For me, that never really crossed my mind until really right before the season when that talk started to build up again.
"If I can steal a base and get us closer to scoring a run, helping us win the game, that's really what it comes down to. If I broke the record, that's awesome, that's something I'd definitely be proud of, but at the same time it wasn't at the forefront of my mind."
In the game that he broke the record, he reached on a walk, then moved to second on a groundout, before swiping third for the record.
"It feels really good, I'm really relieved kind of on two levels," Kelley said after breaking the record. "One, I'm really proud of what I accomplished, it's something I never would have really dreamed of here, but on a second level I'm just kind of relieved it's over, glad we can kind of move on from this and start winning some games here."
Kelley's strength lies in being a student of the game - every time he plays. He said there are a lot of players on the team with more raw talent, but his edge comes from a mental aspect. He picks the right spots to steal bases, based on things he sees from the pitcher, catcher, and other players and points it out to his teammates to make the teammates around him better.
Boss knew Kelley had the potential to be a great base runner and steal bases before he even got to Michigan State. Boss jokingly said he'd be lying if he said he expected Kelley to set stolen base records.
"That goes all the way back to high school when we recruited him, we knew he could do a lot of different things, he's a really dynamic player," Boss said. "Bryce bought in, he's got a great feel for the game, he's got a great knack for picking the right situations to go steal a base, maybe the right count or the right pitch, and he studies pitch patterns in the dugout during the game. He's got the green light to go as he knows the right situations, and I trust him. I've only giving him the steal sign less than a handful of times, the rest has been all him. I think he's really locked in and he gives himself the best opportunity to steal base. I think it's well deserved and I'm happy for him getting the record."
The stolen base record is well-deserved and well-recognized by Boss, and the Spartans.
"Bryce Kelley is as steady as they come," MSU head coach Jake Boss Jr. said. "I told our guys after the game, you think about setting a school record, and you know it sounds good but if you really dig into it, we've been playing baseball here for 137 years, and so for anybody to set any kind of school record, I think is a really, really monumental achievement and Bryce has earned. I think he's one of the smartest players I think that we've ever coached here, we just kind of get out of the way and let him do his thing. He's obviously very, very good at it. I'm just really happy for him and very proud of him."
Kelley's best contribution to his team may come off the field.
"My teammates joke about this all the time; one of my teammates said, 'We could be losing by 15 runs or winning by 15 and if we looked at you we'd never be able to tell'," Kelley said. "Whether we're up big or it's tight or something like that, others being able to look toward me and see that it's not the end of the world whatever is going on. Focusing on what you can do on that pitch at that time, is definitely something I do well."
Kelley's choice to make a tough situation last spring turn into a positive is a big deal. He could have been down about the end of his MSU career, but instead, always searched for the best opportunities for his life.
"I think my employer and kind of everyone I talked to put things in perspective and changed the way that I look around and appreciate things more from a baseball perspective," Kelley said. "I was kind of guilty the first couple years. Life was passing me by pretty quick and there's a lot of things coming at you with school, baseball, social life, all that kind of stuff. It just put that in perspective that I'm going to be working 30, 35 years after graduation.
"Why not play baseball one more year and have some fun and spend some more time with my teammates? That was kind of the driving factor behind all this."
And what a drive it has been for Kelley as he closes out his Spartan career this weekend, but leaves with school records and many memories in tow.
Kelley and his fellow Spartans play the final game of the 2021 season on Sunday with a 1:05 p.m. first pitch.
Sunday is MSU's Senior Day, as the Spartans will honor their seven senior players: Sam Benschoter, Trevor Hopman, Bryce Kelley, Andrew Morrow, Jarret Olson, Bailey Peterson and Joe Stewart, along with senior manager Scott Newhard, in addition to 2020 seniors: Caleb Sleeman, Danny Gieselman and Justin Antoncic, in a pre-game ceremony.
The weekend schedule is subject to change based on weather.
Along with any schedule updates, fans can follow the games with links for live stats, live audio (when available) and live streaming from Big Ten Network+ at MSUSpartans.com.
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