Kelly, Paulson are brothers in baseball and life

Like fathers, like sons, that's what seems to show the most when Adam Paulson and Kasey Kelly sit down to talk about baseball and where it has taken them.

Call 'em baseball brothers from other mothers and fathers if you will, the two will foster a friendship -and kinship - for one more summer before their base paths take them in opposite directions.

The two members of Medical Lake High School's Class of 2013 spent this past spring reunited with the Community Colleges of Spokane. They are currently "living the dream" with a backyard swimming pool, the beach close by - and baseball - Kelly said as members of the Inland Empire Senators of the Orange County Collegiate League in Riverside, Calif.

This summer is likely the last time the two will team as a dynamic pitcher-catcher duo, but the friendship that baseball fostered a decade ago for Kelly, 21, and Paulson 20, is lifelong.

Paulson recently accepted an offer to play at baseball Mecca, Lewis-Clark State, the recently crowned for the umpteenth time NAIA national champions.

"It was kinda' hard to pass that up," Paulson said.

Kelly is trying to figure out his next destination after an injury-shortened redshirt sophomore season at CCS. He has another year of eligibility remaining at CCS, but hopes playing in California might rustle up some offers to play college ball elsewhere.

If he maintains early numbers, a .562 batting average, it will certainly help that cause.

The two consider themselves practically brothers, and rightly so, ever since meeting when both were about 10.

"The first day I met you (Kelly) I came over to hang out with your cousins," Paulson said. The Kellys had just moved to the West Plains from California.

Kerry Kelly, Kasey's dad and current Medical Lake head baseball coach, bonded with the boys right off, going to Salnave Elementary School and hitting ground balls to Adam and Kasey.

"The funny thing was the first time I met your dad, I thought he was one of the scariest people I ever met, just this hard-ass," Paulson told his friend as the two sat in the CCS clubhouse. "Now he's a big jokester and laid back."

The pair's fathers were certainly instrumental in crafting their love for baseball, but in different ways.

For Kelly his immersion in baseball began in Southern California where his dad coached and Kasey was the batboy at 4.

Mike Paulson coached in West Plains Little League and worked one-on-one with his son. His passion for the game injected enthusiasm for baseball that is evident in Adam Paulson's voice, which shows excitement when he talks about the sport.

While the two hung out a lot in their younger years, their time on the playing field was limited, primarily by Kelly and a seemingly endless litany of injuries.

He broke his ankle as a freshman, tore one ACL his sophomore year and as a junior he did the same to the other knee. Kelly missed Medical Lake's dismal one-win baseball season in 2012, but, "I had to deal with my dad after games," Kelly said.

Things finally seemed to come together when the two were seniors and got their year started playing football together for the Cardinals.

"Senior year it just kinda' took off," Paulson said. "That helped because I was quarterback and he was my receiver."

The pair were always working together, Paulson said, and they formed a bond of trust that was unbreakable on the field.

"If Kasey was on the field and we had a pass call, it's going to Kasey," Paulson said. "I knew he was going to catch it."

Paulson knew Kelly would go where he needed to. "We had our own audible too, " Kelly added.

By the time spring rolled around, that chemistry the two established in football transferred seamlessly to baseball. "It was like we were always on the same page," Paulson said.

"I just know what he's going to throw and he knows what he wants to throw," Kelly explained.

Kelly, being a hitter, had a better idea of what he would be looking for in that situation, Paulson said. The two would evaluate the situation and work accordingly.

As their high school years wound to a close, in a matter of days things went from some of the highest of highs to lowest of lows for the pair.

After rebounding from a 1-17 season in 2012, Medical Lake finished its year 20-4 in 2013 and qualified for the state playoffs, reaching the semifinals.

However, just eight days after the end of the season Paulson's world exploded when his father, Mike, passed away unexpectedly May 26, 2013.

Paulson had signed in March to play for NAIA Midland University in Nebraska.

"I really contemplated not going to Nebraska just because I had to be here for my mom (Julie) and my sister (Emily)," Paulson said.

His mother was adamant that his father would have wanted him to carry on. "It was nice to get away for a while," Paulson said. But at times it was hard to be away from home.

"I made the best of the situation and had a pretty good year down there," Paulson said. That included a trip to the national tournament but when Midland's coach exited for a new job, it was time for Paulson to come home.

Paulson was given a release to explore other options and one of the first people to contact him was Community Colleges of Spokane coach Bobby Lee.

It was the perfect opportunity to get back home, be close to the family. "It was kind of the ideal situation," Paulson said. He appeared in seven games, had a 3-4 record and a 2.64 ERA for the Sasquatch.

For Kelly, the scenario had a familiar injury ring to it. After redshirting in 2014, Kelly played in just 15 games and batted .174 this season, but was hampered by a bout of tendonitis in his elbow.

Paulson has high praise for his friend and battery mate. "I put Kasey's abilities as a catcher at a Division I level," Paulson said. "He's the best defensive catcher I've seen."

While their careers will likely take different roads after the conclusion of the summer season, their friendship and times together in the past have been a huge factor in their futures.

"We're not together but we're a big part of why each other is going to go where we're going to go," Paulson said.

Paul Delaney can be reached at [email protected].