2024 MSBL Honor Roll Inductee: Bryan Deshayes, New Mexico Adult Baseball League
By Steve LaMontia, Director of Communications
Bryan Deshayes is approaching his fifth year as the leader of the New Mexico Adult Baseball League, a very successful MSBL member located in and around Albuquerque, and previously led by Bryan’s mentors, Chris Maxwell and Vince Overfelt. The 39-year-old Deshayes began playing in the league when he was 19 and has been an integral part in growing the league to its current 16-team format and over 300 players.
For his dedication and leadership, MSBL Founder and President Steve Sigler has inducted Bryan into the 2024 class on the MSBL Honor Roll. Below is a profile of Bryan and a peek at the roadmap that brought him to this point.
Your name: Bryan Deshayes
City or town of residence: Albuquerque, NM
Age: 39
League name: New Mexico Adult Baseball League (NMABL)
The town where the league is based: Albuquerque
Are you currently the League President? Yes
If so, when did you become President? 2020
Where did you grow up? I was born in Richland, Washington, but lived most of my life in Albuquerque, NM.
What do you do for a living? Project Manager for Sandia National Laboratories
Family information: I’m extremely lucky to be supported by my beautiful wife, Justine Deshayes, and three kiddos: Connor (8 and loves baseball!), Kelsey (7), and Claire (2). Without my wife, I would not have the opportunity to spend the time I do as President of the NMABL. She has held down the fort on multiple occasions while I’ve had to deal with league issues.
Even though this is a volunteer position and takes hundreds of hours of my time each year, she understands how important it is to me and the joy it brings to all the players in the league. This league also allows my son to watch me play and compete in a sport he is passionate about as well, so I try to set a great example for him.
Describe your baseball resume: I played from six years old through High School in Los Alamos, NM, and graduated in 2003. Always loved pitching, outfield, and first base and received all-district team honors. I discovered the New Mexico MSBL at age 19 in college, and have played in the league on and off for 20 years now. The experience has led to me finding some great friends, as well as keeping me active into my late 30s. 
What is your greatest baseball moment, either watching or playing? I always remember my Dad hitting me pop-ups when I was younger. He was not a huge baseball or sports fan in any way, but he did his best to support my dream as a young boy and always took the time to train with me the best he could. With my son, Connor, I have loved training him and being his manager for Little League since he started playing.
We constantly train together, and he practices with my men’s team leading up to the season. I know these times with him will be some of the best memories as a father I’ll have so I try to enjoy every moment of it. I’m also on the board of our local Little League and try to give back to the baseball community as much knowledge and time as I can.
When did you start playing for MSBL and how did you hear about it? I heard about MSBL in 2004/05 through Facebook. Chris Maxwell, the President at the time, gave me the number of a manager from the Muckdogs. It was great to find an organization that provided baseball to young men after their careers in high school or college had ended. My first game was in Santa Fe, NM where I hit a home run and pitched a complete game. After that, I played off and on during my MBA program in college and really became more dedicated in about 2012.
Do you still play? Yes, I am still playing in our 18+ division as manager/player of the Duke City Angels. We have a great squad and have managed to pull the #1 seed the last two years (27-3-1 regular season record). Unfortunately, we are still looking for our first championship in the division. I love the challenge of the 18+ division as we have eight competitive teams.
I still love to pitch, so the competition forces me to focus on my health, training, and physical conditioning. With three kids, it can be tough to balance everything, but staying active really gives me more energy to do the things I love, including baseball and time with my family. 
What team and age bracket? Duke City Angels, 18+
What is the best thing about your league? We have had a very resilient league, especially since COVID-19 hit. As the local high school district did not allow any community usage during COVID, we lost two years of baseball. This gutted our league, and we nearly did not bring the organization back.
The entire school district was hesitant to allow us to use the fields and I had to re-form all our field relationships. Once we rebuilt that trust with the school district and our head coaches, we had a solid 14 teams return in 2022. We are entering our third season since COVID with nearly 300 players, 16 teams in two divisions, and several new fields. I am proud of all my managers who stuck with the struggles including COVID, umpire, and field issues these past few years.
I’m also proud of the money that we are able to dedicate directly to high school baseball programs throughout the city. This year alone, our non-profit league has donated over $10,000 to various high school baseball programs that go directly to improving their fields, facilities, and equipment. This not only makes our baseball community stronger it helps improve the facilities we use on a yearly basis. My goal is to grow the league to 20 teams, create an All-Star weekend, and partner with two additional high schools within the next two years.
Do you participate in any MSBL national tournaments? During the last decade, I’ve been to several National Tournaments including the Las Vegas Kickoff and the World Series in Phoenix. The tournaments offer our players the experience of playing on top-notch professional facilities as well as competing at high levels versus teams we have not seen before. My Dad and I usually go to the World Series in Phoenix as a father/son trip and it creates amazing lifelong memories that I hope to share with my son one day. I highly recommend any player out there to go to a National Tournament, especially the World Series in Phoenix.
Who is your favorite player of all time and why? I like watching Freddie Freeman as I think he plays the game the right way, is humble, and shows great sportsmanship.
Are there any additional personal comments you wish to add about your playing or life thus far? Play for as long as you can. Our bodies may eventually fail, and we may get to the point where our family or job must take priority over our hobby baseball time. However, we have a great privilege to be able to play the game we love. Many young boys and men do not have the physical ability or accessibility to play baseball. I try to remember to be grateful every day that I can still play, and I try to pass that message along to the players and managers in our league. Also, take care of your body as best you can, including working out, eating healthy, and eliminating alcohol. You only have one body and the better you take care of yourself now, the longer you can play.
Are there any comments about MSBL you wish to share? Steve Sigler and the MSBL/MABL National is a great organization that has always been there to support me since I took over as NMABL President. Sometimes it feels like you’re on an island when you are running a league and very few people understand the stress, time, and commitment that goes into making a league run successfully. Steve has taken the time to call or email me throughout the year to ensure things are going well or ask about my family. I’m definitely going to be an ambassador for MSBL for years to come. Thank you to the previous local presidents, Chris Maxwell and Vince Overfelt as I still learn and lean on them for advice about the league. I also want to thank Matt Reeder, my new VP of NMABL, for his help this season.
