FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Evan O’Kelly Director of Communications O: (406) 657-2130 E: evan.okelly@msubillings.edu Thursday, March 10, 2016 At third, Durbin is invaluable leader for Yellowjackets
Entering MSUB’s program last season as a transfer, senior third baseman Kyle Durbin has a profound impact on the Yellowjackets through his soft-spoken, lead-by-example mentality. MSUB SPORTS – The first time Kyle Durbin ever spiked the dirt at the hot corner was in February of 2015, as he occupied the leadoff spot in the batting order for the Montana State University Billings baseball team in a road game at Dixie State University. Having played shortstop his whole life – including his first seven games of the year for the Yellowjackets – Durbin was being asked to make yet another adjustment. In his first year with the ‘Jackets, Durbin had transferred in as a junior from the College of Eastern Utah and was being called upon by MSUB head coach Rob Bishop to slot in as a leader immediately. “Any time we recruit a transfer student we expect them to contribute right away,” Bishop said. “Kyle was no exception to this rule. I felt like he was a guy who would give us good at bats and be solid defensively, and he has definitely lived up to both of those expectations.”
Having bonded with fellow junior transfer Corey Morris throughout the fall, the switch of positions for Durbin was made easier by Morris slotting in next to him at shortstop. “It was nice because Corey is my best friend and we had that communication on the left side of the infield,” Durbin commented on the switch. “It wasn’t a hard transition, and the coaches did a really good job helping me with it.” Jump ahead to his senior year, and Durbin is playing as well as he ever has for the ‘Jackets through 11 games. He has had multiple fielding chances in nine of MSUB’s games, and has handled all 29 total without making an error so far this season. On top of that, Durbin is batting .429 over his last six games and has struck out just twice in that time span.
Durbin (right) talks it over with Morris and Bishop during last season’s GNAC Baseball Championships at Dehler Park.
He is one of four senior infielders, holding down the left side with Morris while Colter Sternhagen and Kevin Toon are around the horn at second base and first base, respectively. “We still chatter, but for the most part everything goes without being said,” Morris commented on the seniors. “Kyle doesn’t say much, but he knows when to say the important things. All of the younger
players look up to him.” Though his time at MSUB has been short, Durbin has already established himself as a leader, and has experienced previously unreached achievements such as the ‘Jackets winning last season’s Great Northwest Athletic Conference regular-season title. The decision to cut out of football and basketball as a junior at Skyline High School in Idaho Falls, Idaho was arguably the best thing Durbin could have done to excel as a baseball player, and now he’s enjoying the best years of his life as a standout at MSUB. COLLEGE BASEBALL? “Kyle Durbin grabs it, steps on second, throws to first, and that’s one, two, three outs,” – ESPN SportsCenter anchor John Buccigross describing Kyle Durbin’s triple play to the wide world of sports on Feb. 8, 2015. Mention early February to most baseball fans and they’ll think little more than a time when pitchers and catchers are beginning to rise from hibernation and get set to report to Spring Training. But by the first week of the month, college baseball teams across the country are already into action, a notion that caught ESPN anchor John Buccigross by surprise as he navigated through the SportsCenter Top-10 plays of the day on Feb. 8, 2015. “College baseball?” Buccigross started play No. 9 with, his voice inflection rising as he questioned the fact that games were already starting.
Durbin didn’t witness Buccigross’s call live, his phone’s battery depleted on the long bus ride back from MSUB’s four-game series at Colorado State University – Pueblo. It wasn’t until the ‘Jackets came to a stop back in Billings and Durbin plugged his phone into his car charger that he quickly found out he had been featured on the most famous sports program in the world after turning a triple play in that day’s game. Baseball has a habit of turning goats into heroes and vice versa in the blink of an eye, as Durbin commented that he failed to fully grasp the triple play in the moment it happened because he was still thinking about striking out with the bases loaded four innings earlier. “At about 3 a.m. our assistant coach Austin Rue came back to me on the bus and told me that I had just been on SportsCenter,” said Durbin. “I had forgotten about the play and I didn’t believe him at first. When I plugged my phone in later I had messages from all these people I hadn’t talked to in forever. It was definitely cool, it’s every athlete’s dream to make it onto SportsCenter.” The ever-rare triple play itself happened in the sixth inning, as runners stood on first and second and then-shortstop Durbin crept forward in anticipation of the pitch. By the time the low line drive to his left reached him, baseball second-nature kicked in. The flight of the ball carried Durbin directly to the bag at second base, upon which touching he threw on to Toon at first. One, fluid motion, an act of art that happened so quickly and effortlessly that had Toon not reacted as if he’d just caught the final out of the World Series, Durbin may not have realized his achievement. WATCH: Durbin’s Triple Play Featured on ESPN SportsCenter “Their baserunners were being a little over-aggressive, and when he hit it my instincts just took over,” Durbin remembered. “I had seen a couple of triple plays in little league, but no legit triple plays until that one.” It wasn’t the only triple play the ‘Jackets turned in the 2015 season, as Durbin played the role of witness when Brody Miller, Morris, and Toon pulled off a game-ending trifecta against Northwest Nazarene on April 24, 2015. BUILDING A CHAMPION “It was huge in that he had never seen me play and he put that kind of trust in me by offering me this spot. One of his strengths is that he doesn’t expect guys to change when they get here. That’s why we are as successful as we are.” – Senior Kyle Durbin on MSUB head coach Rob Bishop. Upon finishing his high-school career, Durbin elected to navigate the junior college route and focus on skill development for the next two years. Although he had visited with Bishop before making his decision to go to Utah, he knew that after two seasons he’d have to decide on a college to relocate to. When the phone call from Bishop came, Durbin was in the midst of moving home from school. The opportunity to become a Yellowjacket was one he had been waiting for, and it was an easy decision to commit. “All of my relatives live
here in Billings, and when Coach Bishop called me it was pretty exciting,” Durbin said. “I don’t think he knows this, but I had a couple of other schools looking at me too, but they never had a chance. When he called it was a done deal.” Bishop knew his 2015 squad could be competitive, but to fight for a shot at a GNAC title he needed to hit the jackpot with players who combined experience and the maturity required to be immediate contributors in a new setting. With the commitment of Durbin, Morris, and right-handed pitcher Tanner Johnson, Bishop felt he had the pieces he needed to complement his already-talented roster led by the likes of Miller, Luke Reinschmidt, and Toon. “You can say anything you want about leadership and leaders in general, but rule number one is that you must lead by example,” Bishop said. “Kyle is great in this area. At the end of the day, you want to have great people in your program, and Kyle is a great example of what a student-athlete should be at this level.” Durbin’s ability to pick up with the ‘Jackets in stride is a function of how he was raised and the coaching he received in his career leading up to MSUB. In high school, Brian Moses spent one season with the Grizzlies and Durbin credits him with taking his defensive game to the next level. Joldy Watts, one of Durbin’s coaches while playing American Legion baseball, not only helped him develop and fine-tune his game, but led Durbin to his own alma mater at Eastern Utah. Durbin credits Watts with making his dreams of playing college baseball turn into a reality, as the former Texas Rangers minor leaguer provided a boost in confidence that pushed Durbin to pursue a college career. Upon reaching the Yellowjackets, Durbin was reunited with fellow Idahoan Casey Merritt, and Belgrade, Mont., native Johnson who he had played against during his prep career. Little did he know that the ‘Jackets were destined for their first-ever GNAC title and first winning season since baseball had been restored prior to the 2006 season. After last year’s taste of success Durbin is confident MSUB is bound for a repeat this season. “If we can come together and all handle our business, we feel like we have a chance to be better than we were last year,” Durbin said. “We want to win the regular season and the conference tournament, and we would like to get a regional bid. We have already competed against Dixie State and teams of that nature, and if we continue to roll towards the end of the season we feel like we can make some serious noise.” RETURN TO NAMPA “I’ve tried to shadow him and his leadership capabilities since I was young. I’ve watched Kyle a lot, and he’s the type of teammate and person I want to be. When people think of Kyle, they’ll think of how good of a leader he is.” – Freshman Scott Allison on long-time teammate Kyle Durbin.
As the Yellowjackets head to Durbin’s home state this weekend to take on Northwest Nazarene University in a fourgame GNAC series, the senior will have plenty to be excited about. Vail Baseball Field is the site where the ‘Jackets swept the Crusaders in four games a season ago, kicking off a remarkable run of 20 wins in their final 25 games that ultimately led to the conference crown. Durbin was huge in last season’s series, as he had game-winning, tworun doubles in each of the first two victories. Representing more than just wins on MSUB’s schedule, Durbin’s hits helped Bishop capture the 500th win of his career, a figurative tip of the cap from Durbin to his skipper signifying the latter had struck gold with his recruiting. In the final game at NNU last year, Durbin hit the first home run of his life, a two-run shot that put an exclamation point on an 8-0 win. The circumstances couldn’t be better for Durbin to continue his current hot streak at the plate, and younger players like freshman catcher Scott Allison will look up to him as an example to model their careers after. “My first thought was that he never did anything flashy, but he has been the glue of every team that he’s been on,” Allison said on being teammates with Durbin since their days together at Skyline High. “I think that’s why he has had a lot of success in his career. He has been a good teammate his whole life.” “I’m not a very vocal guy, but I just like to think I handle my business the right way,” Durbin said. “I always put in effort and get extra work in, and I hope Scott sees that.” Beyond competing in four big conference games this weekend, Durbin will get to play in front of his family as Nampa is the closest stop to his home town the ‘Jackets are in all season. Though he may not say it, the chance to compete close to his roots may be Durbin’s favorite part of the road trip to NNU. He’ll remember the days of playing two basketball games during the week, football on Friday nights, and heading down to Utah for four baseball games on Saturday and Sunday. Durbin’s father, Bob, will be in attendance, recalling his son naturally gripping the bat left handed and throwing the ball right handed as a kid – a baseball parent’s dream. From coaching Kyle in travel ball and the time when his son almost gave up the game at age 13, Bob has always been there with words of encouragement and advice. “We talk all the time, and he has been at every series this year,” Durbin commented on his father. “He’s competitive the same way that I am, and it is just our nature. I have to give thanks to him, because he has always made time to make sure I got extra swings in. He’s still got that effect on me, and has a presence to help me get out of my own head. If it wasn’t for him, I definitely wouldn’t be in the place I am now.” --@MSUBSports | #JacketNation--