Michigan Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2024: Jake Boss Sr.

EAST LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) – For over 30 years, Jake Boss Sr. was a staple of the high school baseball scene in mid-Michigan.

Between 24 years at Lansing Everett and seven at Lansing Catholic, Boss led his teams to three Diamond Classic championships, 10 district titles and three regional crowns.

Fiery and passionate, he admits he wasn’t always the easiest guy to play for.

“I was hard on a lot of kids, tough because I wanted the best from them,” he said. “I wanted them to realize their best. I would chew a kid out, but I’d walk off the field with my arm around his back telling him I love him.  Sometimes people misconstrue what discipline means. To me, discipline is teaching.”

It was that love of teaching and passion for the game of baseball that kept Boss Sr. coming back year after year.

It’s a passion he’s shared deeply with his son, Michigan State head baseball coach Jake Boss Jr.

“I grew up in a dugout, basically,” said Boss Jr. “I was a batboy when I was five years old and all the way back that I can remember, I mean, he’s been my hero. Even at a young age, I think my mom found a paper I wrote in third grade or second grade or something that was about what do you want to do when you grow up? And I wanted to be a teacher and a coach just like my dad.”

Boss Jr. played for his father at Lansing Everett and went on to play collegiately at Alma College.

True to the words he wrote in that elementary school paper, he got into coaching after his playing days were over and just like his dad, he started out at the high school level in Michigan.

When he was the head coach at Webberville High School, his team even played his dad’s Everett Vikings in a doubleheader (Boss Sr.’s Vikings won both games).

Soon, though, Boss Jr. chased the dream of college coaching out to Iowa Central Community College.

“When he left, I thought I lost my best friend,” recalls Boss Sr. “It was tough but then, you know, history speaks for itself.”

The game had a way of bringing father and son back together. After a few other college coaching stops, Boss Jr. was hired as the head coach at Michigan State in 2008.

He brought on his dad as a volunteer assistant coach.

“I coached the catchers here and that was great,” said Boss Sr. “But that was quite an experience and to top it all off was us winning a Big Ten Championship together. I will never forget that. That is the highlight of my career in baseball.”

Boss Sr. retired from coaching after the 2012 season. Father and son both say those years together are some of the most unforgettable times of their lives, and Boss Jr. says he still gets a phone call from his dad after just about every game.

Earlier this spring, it was Boss Jr. who placed a phone call that his father will never forget; a call where he told his dad he’d be going into the Michigan Baseball Hall of Fame.

“My son called me and he told me that and I’ll tell you, I still can’t get my head around it,” said Boss Sr. “I really can’t. It’s such an honor to be in left field on those plaques at Lugnuts, at the stadium there, with guys like Kaline and Smoltz and Gibson. Are you kidding me? I was just a high school coach!”

His humility aside, it’s easy to see that Jake Boss Sr. was far from just a high school coach.

“You walk around a football game or a basketball game with my dad and it’s hard to get more than 10-15 feet before somebody [he once coached] stops him,” said Boss Jr.

From those people he coached decades ago stopping to connect with him at area games to the passion for baseball he passed on to his son, Boss Sr.’s impact on mid-Michigan baseball spans generations.

His Hall of Fame induction cements that legacy.

“I’m just really proud,” Boss Jr. said before pausing. He stared into the outfield at McLane Stadium, choking up as he reflected on his dad’s career and influence. “Proud. Proud to have had him on my staff. Proud of the career he’s had. Proud to be his son.”

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