CLARKSTON - Improved speed has helped Ryan McKay become a Big 10 commit.

“Last March I was running a 7.7,” McKay said about his time in the 60. “Speed has always been a problem in my life. So every single day I’d run sprints. Covid was nice in that regard for me. Every single day I’d run 60s non-stop.”

The result?

“I got my 7.7 down to 6.7 at the Futures,” McKay noted. “Once I got that down, I’m able to do the little things.”

That is something the St. Mary’s Prep junior takes pride in and Michigan State understands after an offer and commitment has the top-rated 2023 second baseman in the state becoming a future Spartan.

“They know I’m a game guy,” McKay said of MSU. “I’m not 95 across the diamond or someone who runs 6.4. They see in me a game guy. I do little things. I’m a game guy … a team guy … and they realize that.”

College coaches got a first-hand look at what McKay could do during the Future Games where the 16-year-old impressed while playing for Team Michigan.

“The Future Games was huge for me,” McKay related. “It got a lot of schools looking at me. The pitching was great and I barrelled up balls. My numbers were good and I think I performed really well.”

Offers from Eastern Michigan and Butler were out there for the third-ranked junior middle infielder in the state, who was also talking to Michigan, Miami, Toledo and Central Michigan in addition to MSU.

“It came down to Michigan State and Michigan,” McKay said. “After the Michigan visit it was down to those two. The Big 10 has been my dream.”

A dream that is now a reality.

“Michigan State just felt like the right fit for me,” McKay noted.

Coaches from the Big 10 school in East Lansing had followed the left-handed hitting McKay since a high school season that ended in a state championship for St. Mary’s Prep.

“After we had six or eight games under our belt they started talking to me,” McKay reflected. “We’d talk one or two times a week. Then after what I did at the Future Games I took a visit. The visit secured it for me. I loved it. The facilities were incredible and I like the big atmosphere there. I want to go somewhere to get better and I feel that’s the place.”

It has the 5-9 170-pounder ready to do something he has thought about since a young age.

“I’ve wanted to play college baseball since T-Ball,” admitted McKay. “Ever since then I’ve told my dad I was going to be a D-I player and go to the major leagues.”

In Michigan State, McKay will attend a school where four siblings, three sisters and a brother, have gone.

“I’m happy to continue that,” McKay said. “They’re all big on academics and that’s the first thing for me. I liked their academics.”

McKay pointed to four other people that have been vital in getting where he is today in the game of baseball.

“Nate Sier, my trainer, showed me how to do every lift right and has benefited me as much as anyone,” McKay said. “Coach (Matt) Petry, my high school head coach, has also been big and Aaron Wilson (PBR Michigan Director of Scouting) has been great. He’s helped me so much. Another is Joe Mooney, who I played for from age 10 to 13.”

McKay, who carries a 3.82 GPA, plans to major in business at Michigan State while also making a big impact in the baseball program.

“My work ethic is something that’s unbeatable,” McKay noted. “If I get in the weight room I’m lifting more than the guy next to me. That’s my mindset. I’m going to be a leader and bring a winning energy-type atmosphere to the program.”

More speed is not the only area that has gotten better due to the strong work ethic of McKay.

“My power has also improved,” McKay explained. “I got in the weight room in the winter and that led to me having a lot more power. I had five home runs during high school and two more home runs this summer.”

It helped bring more eyes to a recruiting process that was fun according to McKay.

“I had a blast, honestly,” McKay said. “It was a long process talking to different coaches and all that interest made me feel good about myself. I was in no rush. I wanted to enjoy it and make all the visits I could.”

In the end, McKay took four visits before deciding that Michigan State was the right place to spend his college days.

“My parents were there when I committed,” McKay related. “After the phone call it was pretty special. They know all the hard work I put in up to this point.”