PITTSBURGH — Drafted by the Detroit Tigers a decade ago, it took Don Kelly nearly that long to earn his stripes.

But the Butler native and 31-year-old utility player is finally a bona fide big leaguer.

Kelly spent his first full season in the major leagues with the Tigers in 2010, hitting .244 with nine homers and 27 RBI in 238 at bats.

The most at bats he’s had in a major league season before then? ... 27, with the Pirates in 2007.

“It’s been a long road,” Kelly admitted last weekend, as the Tigers were at PNC Park for a weekend series against the Pirates. “I’m glad that road came through Pittsburgh. I have a lot of good memories here.”

He has a lot of family here as well. Approximately 30 friends and family members came to the ballpark to see him last weekend. A Mt. Lebanon graduate, Kelly’s wife Carrie is Pine-Richland graduate Neil Walker’s sister and the family lives in Wexford during the off-season.

“I’ve still got family in Butler,” Kelly said. “We don’t get up there much, though, maybe every other year or so.”

Kelly missed being a teammate of his brother-in-law by three seasons. When Kelly was with the Pirates four years ago, Walker was hitting .288 with 13 homers at Class AA Altoona.

The two crossed paths briefly in spring training, but that was all.

Walker’s sudden success with the Pirates came as no surprise to Kelly.

“All he needed was a chance,” Kelly said. “It was a matter of time. Neil is a student of this game. He has a lot of ability and the desire to go with it.”

While Kelly is with the Tigers, he’s not on the field all that much. He saw action in 23 of the team’s first 58 games, hitting .265 (13 hits in 49 at bats) with no homers and two RBI.

But he serves a purpose.

“I’m Mr. Utility Guy,” he said, smiling. “I’m a left-hand bat who can hit a little bit and I can fill in wherever needed.

“I’ve played every position on the field except pitcher and catcher ... and I’m listed as the emergency third-string catcher on the roster.”

Kelly made an Opening Day roster for the first time with the Pirates during that 2007 season. His first major league at bat occurred on Opening Day that season in Houston.

He popped out to shortstop.

“It was a long at-bat against Brad Lidge in front of 45,000 people going nuts,” Kelly said. “It was an experience. That was a rough baptism.”

He did collect his first big league hit against San Francisco’s Russ Ortiz 11 days later. But Kelly was sent to Class AAA Indianapolis in June and had his contract outrighted there a month later.

Since then, he’s been with Tucson — the Class AAA affiliate of the arizona Diamondbacks — and Toledo, the Tigers’ AAA club. Kelly hit .331 with Toledo in 2009, earning himself a late-season call-up to the big club.

He hasn’t been back down since.

“There’s been a number of times when I’ve wondered how much longer I should stay with this,” he said of his baseball career. “My wife has been a gem through all of these moves.

“One thing I never questioned was my ability or confidence. I’ve always believed I could play at this level. Convincing others can be difficult.

“I can’t say I appreciate being a big leaguer more than anybody else. But I certainly appreciate how hard it can be to get here,” Kelly added.