Column: Barrington loses an unsung sports hero

BY MANUEL C. “MANNY” CORREIRA
Posted 12/27/16

The town of Barrington lost one of its most beloved and iconic citizens recently when Dan MacPhee passed away on December 12, at the age of 96.

Dan meant so much to so many people, particularly …

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Column: Barrington loses an unsung sports hero

Posted

The town of Barrington lost one of its most beloved and iconic citizens recently when Dan MacPhee passed away on December 12, at the age of 96.

Dan meant so much to so many people, particularly from an athletic standpoint. He was the founder of the Barrington Post 8 American Legion baseball team, which skyrocketed to fame in 1979, when they captured the Rhode Island State championship, and then went on to win the New England Regional Tournament. But it didn’t end there.

Led by a group of outstanding ballplayers, such as Bristol’s Matt Securo, who helped pitch the team to the finals of the American Legion national championship in Greenville, Miss., the Barrington boys made headlines up and down the eastern seaboard.

Matt Securo was just one of the kids back then who struck a positive chord with Dan MacPhee right from the start.

“I almost didn't play for Post 8,” Mr. Securo remembers. “I had been asked by a fellow Bristol High School teammate about playing for the Newport team. My junior year at Bristol High had just ended and I wasn't sure as to my summer baseball plans. Around the same time, I received a phone call from Mr.MacPhee asking me if I had any interest in playing legion baseball in Barrington. I was impressed as to how much he knew of me, and that was the deciding moment. I was a bit worried about how I would fit in with a team predominately comprised of ‘rival’ Barrington players, but he reassured me that I would be welcomed there. Mr. MacPhee visited me at my home and spoke with my parents and I, and the rest was history."

Matt Securo was one of the finest high school pitchers in the state during that period, and Dan MacPhee knew darn well that Barrington Post 8 would benefit with his addition.

“I quickly realized from the first practice, that Mr. MacPhee was correct, the chemistry of the players and coaches were as he had described,” said Mr. Securo. “Mr. MacPhee was a strong supporter of mine, and just his presence around the team gave us confidence. He was also right about the players and families of Post 8. We were family; we supported one another and never gave up, mostly due to his belief in us.”

“His interest in my life continued after the two years I was a member of Post 8, as I entered my college career at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida. Each year while he vacationed in a nearby town, he would reach out to me, and take me out to dinner with his wife and sons (Kevin and Gary). I will never forget the support he gave me.”

Mr. Securo concluded, “I was fortunate to see Mr. MacPhee a few times since those days, especially when any Post 8 reunion came around. He was just as proud of the team then, as if it were still1979. Because of Mr. MacPhee and his sons, coaches Mike and Kevin, I was able to experience the thrill of a lifetime. I was proud to have known him and am forever indebted for all he did. I am sure I share the same sentiment with the entire Post 8 teams of 1979 and 1980.” 

Former Barrington High School star athlete Pat Monti also had a special relationship with Dan MacPhee.

“Dan approached me in 1972 or ’73 and asked me to help him form an American Legion baseball team in Barrington,” he said. “Dan was an avid Boston Red Sox fan and loved baseball. He had two sons who played ball at Barrington High School. He did all the legal work to get Post 8 in Barrington to sponsor the team. He paid for the entire expense of fielding the team (uniforms, equipment, umpire fees, etc.). I coached the team the first two years and we actually went to the state finals in the second year.”

But, like Matt Securo alluded to earlier, it was the 1979 team, coached by Kevin MacPhee and assisted by Michael MacPhee, which made major headlines.

“The team made it all the way to the National finals of the Legion World Series in Greenville, Mississippi Labor Day weekend,” Mr. Monti recalled. “Dan even paid for my son (the batboy) and me to travel with the team. It was one of the greatest sports experiences of my life. ESPN had just begun that summer and the Legion World Series was one of its first broadcasts.”

Eight teams qualified for the Legion World Series that year. Two of the eight were from Barrington: Barrington, RI and Barrington, Ill. Barrington, RI beat Barrington, Ill., 2-1 in extra innings in the semifinals, but in the championship final, highly-touted Yakima, Wa. defeated Barrington Post 8, 13-5, after trailing early in the first inning.

“Dan helped many players who played for the Legion team throughout the 30-something years,” said Mr. Monti. “He was just an incredible human being.”

Mr. Monti said Dan MacPhee always went the extra mile to make baseball a pleasurable experience for all players.

“After all home games at Victory Field, he would feed both teams with a cookout,” Mr. Monti noted. “Before games, he would actually help rake and water the infield. Teams throughout the state loved playing Post 8 because they were treated well. Almost every year, Dan would schedule exhibition games throughout New England playing the best teams. Several trips to the Baseball Hall of Fame were scheduled for the players and their parents. We would visit the Hall and then play against the Cooperstown team. Dan subsidized much of the trips.”

Like Pat Monti commonly professed, “Dan MacPhee was one of the great unsung heroes in Barrington sports.”

Aside from baseball, Mr. MacPhee was the founder of the Woodchuckers Golf League, and one of the founders of North Atlantic Millwork Corp, for 16 years before retiring in 1987. He was also a U.S. Army veteran serving during World War II. He was the husband of Marie (Lynch) MacPhee and the late Lois A. (Lynch) MacPhee. He is also survived by sons, Michael J. MacPhee of Pawtucket and D. Kevin MacPhee and his wife, Cynthia, of Titusville, Fla.; a brother, John H. MacPhee of Tampa, Fla.; three grandchildren and one great-grandson. He was the father of the late Gary J. MacPhee.

Dan MacPhee was laid to rest early last week, leaving behind some great memories of his days in the Primrose Hill neighborhood, where he resided for many years. What he did for the youth in this town was immeasurable. Those who knew him will quickly tell you that there was no one else like him. They were right. Dan MacPhee was in a class by himself.

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