By Jim Fenton
BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The first time they were paired together in the middle of the infield for the Bridgewater State University baseball team was March 5, 2022.
The place was Myrtle Beach, S.C., and it was a 16-3 win over Hilbert College of New York when shortstop Kevin Lindsay (East Bridgewater, Mass.) and second baseman Scott Emerson (Peabody, Mass.) worked as a double-play combination.
They have rarely been out of the BSU lineup ever since, playing roughly 100 games together and providing the Bears with an exceptional partnership at two key positions.
Lindsay, a senior physical education major, and Emerson, a junior finance major, are in their third season as the shortstop/second base combination for BSU. And because Lindsay has a fifth year of eligibility due to the COVID rules, they will be back for a fourth season in 2025.
"What a great thing for us to have them together for four years," said Bears coach Greg Zackrison. "They are so solid. They both love fielding.
"Kevin would rather take ground balls than batting practice. Scott is just so athletic."
Lindsay has missed just two of the 132 games BSU has played since he arrived in 2021 while Emerson has played 101 of the 103 games the Bears have had in his career, sitting out the only two last season.
They are dependable, productive and work well together and have been key reasons why BSU has gone 69-34 since the start of the 2022 season with two straight trips to the NCAA Division 3 tournament.
Emerson was the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference rookie of the year in '22, the first Bears' player to receive that honor since Steve Smith in 2005.
He made the All-MASCAC first team both seasons and was on the All-American Baseball Coaches Association Region 2 third team as a sophomore.
Lindsay was selected to the ABCA/Rawlings Division 3 Region 2 all-defensive team last spring when he made just seven errors in 46 games and was on the All-MASCAC second team.
Emerson, the leadoff hitter for a third year in a row, and Lindsay, who bats either second or ninth, form a strong connection.
"It's worked out for us," said Lindsay. "Credit to him. We're tough kids. It's not easy to play every game for years and years. You fight through injuries and everything. You stay on the field and take pride in what you do.
"It's awesome. We just complement each other so well. There's a lot of confidence when you know you're throwing to a guy who's going to get it done every time. It's about trusting each other.''
Lindsay and Emerson have put together a bond on the field and a bond off the field as well since that 2022 season.
"Working with Kevin has been unbelievable," said Emerson. "When I came in, he already had a year under his belt. He really acted as a mentor to me when I first got here about the whole program, about anything I needed. From practicing every day together to games, the chemistry just built from there. Trust just built between me and Kevin and now three years in, it's like clockwork for us.
"I think even outside of baseball, me and Kevin are really good friends. I feel like the relationship we've built outside of baseball has really translated onto the field and helped us get more chemistry on the field."
Lindsay played second base as a freshman in 2021 with senior Tyler Rondeau at shortstop.
He struggled at the plate that season, but has been an above .300 hitter ever since.
Lindsay batted .333 with 18 stolen bases in 44 games in 2022 when he took over at shortstop, his position at East Bridgewater High, then had 50 hits with a .338 average and 25 stolen bases last season and is at .356 during the first 12 games of this season. In 130 games, Lindsay has a career average of .313 with 52 steals.
"My freshman year, I struggled," said Lindsay, who is likely going to be the program's leader in career games played. "I couldn't really get in a groove. My sophomore year, I feel like I established myself and started to see a turn. I've been running with it since.
"I'm gritty. I fight. I'm just trying to find a way on. I'm just trying to stay consistent."
Emerson gives BSU speed at the top of the lineup, and he already has 127 hits and 70 stolen bases (fourth all-time at BSU) just over halfway through his career.
He batted .353 with 31 stolen bases as a freshman, .341 with 30 steals last season, and is at .286 with nine thefts so far this season. Emerson was named MASCAC Player of the Week on Monday after going 5-for-9 with three stole bases, five runs scored and two RBI in a pair of games last week.
"I've improved greatly," said Emerson. "As the years have gone on, I've gotten a lot more comfortable in the box, a lot more confident. I just feel like being in my third year, it's become a lot easier and I know what to expect.
"I'm a guy who tries to put the ball in play, find holes. I know my job as a leadoff hitter is to try to get on for the guys behind me and use my speed to score."
In the field, Lindsay and Emerson use their skills to turn double plays and to make key defensive plays as they work together.
"We've made a great connection. We've spun a lot of double plays," said Lindsay. "I trust Scott a lot. We have great communication. He's a great kid, one of my best friends.
"He's outstanding. He's got great range, excellent speed. He's a lock over there. He gets everything. He's a vacuum. We take a lot of pride in our defense.
"I've got a lot of confidence in myself as a fielder. I do believe that I'm going to give it my best effort every time the ball is hit to me. It's not really for me, it's for the guy on the mound. I'm just trying to do my job."
Emerson has enjoyed being part of the double-play combination right from the start back in March 2022.
"It's been a blessing to be able to work with Kev, someone who makes your job a lot easier," he said. "Working with Kevin for three years, I've definitely never worked with anyone like him. He's like a wizard over here at shortstop. I don't know how he does some of the things he does.
"We try to control the whole infield. It really comes down to helping our pitchers out. When the pitchers are in a jam, if me and Kevin can turn one play into two outs with a double play, that's all we want to do, just hold it down in the middle."