bbscout

It is our honor to hear, again, from his family.
I went back through all 50+ pages of his posts, I wanted to absorb (again) what he had to say. The knowledge he shared is invaluable. I bet Julie will find a way to keep it archived and accessible for all.
We will NOT forget him. His presence here gave credibility and impacted way too many lives...
Take care.

bbscout's legacy? In large part it is his family. You and deemax are sterling examples of your father's legacy. It is very clear to me that you and your brother were raised by a very good man.

I think CatSureMom has put forth some good ideas.

I'm guessing this is Brett. Brett I've never met you personally, but have watched you play. Had some interesting discussions with your dad about you. When talking to him, I kept thinking... What a great dad!

And what a great person for the game of baseball! He will always be remembered!

Brett,

Your father will not be forgotten here...I can assure you of that.

Best of luck.

Brett (assuming it is you)

Nice to have you with us and thanx for the kind words

Your Dad and I talked many times---in fact , I will never forget this, he got me the phone number of a coach, ex MLB Pitcher, who I played with as a young kid back in the '50's---thanx to your dad I was able to rekindle an old relationship and talk about old times


You and your family have a lot to be proud of when it comes to your DAD---he was a great man

Brett
Hi, I am the father of Marcos Cabral your team mate at Hagerstown. Your father and I became great internet friends. Once he told me he wants to seat down with me just to talk baseball (what a honor for me). We never will forget your father in this site. I hope you can resume your career as soom as possible, The Suns need your bat and your defense.

Brett,

Thank you for posting. We have been thinking about you and your family!

I just had dinner with another HSBBWeb mom last night, and of course we talked about the very sad loss of your dad. The other mom had met and talked with your dad many times and had such nice stories to tell. I wondered aloud, is it surprising that many of us who only knew him through his posts and occasional e-mails, feel such a huge loss? One of the things that makes me even sadder about his untimely death is that I hoped to get to meet him some day, but I hadn't yet had that privilege.

What made your dad so special to all of us?

For one thing, he could have puffed his chest out and acted important, with all of his baseball knowledge and MLB scouting experience, but of course he never did - far from it. He modestly but confidently shared his opinions, facts, stories - but never seemed to feel a need to play any of the ego games that unfortunately sometimes do happen on message boards.

He also quietly helped many of our members with baseball advice in e-mails or PMs. A kid did not have to be a "prospect" for your dad to willingly look at video or answer questions.

And most of all, it was so easy to tell how much your dad loved his family. He didn't brag about all of you, but still you couldn't miss the many telltale signs of how important his family was to him - his wife, his children, and his beautiful grandkids - love the avatar photos!

Your dad is a very special man who will not be forgotten. I don't know yet what we will do as an official remembrance, but bbscout will never be forgotten.

Blessings to you and your family,

Julie

P.S. Best wishes to you in your baseball career, Brett. I wonder if you know that you have a bunch of baseball moms and dads here who are almost as proud of you as your dad was!

quote:

He didn't brag about all of you, but still you couldn't miss the little telltale signs of how important his family was to him - his wife,

Julie, He was everything that you just said. I only exchanged a couple PMs with Doug, but one of the things he shared was about his wife's job. She works in the same profession as I. He rarely talked or posted about things where his family wasn't included. That's a treasure of a memory for his wife and kids... he was a very good man beyond baseball. Being a great husband and father is the greatest legacy he could leave on this earth.

Beemax; I'm sure I'm not alone when I say that every time I log on, your dad is pretty much the first thing that I think about....and when I log off, too. He left huge footprints on this site, and in this world. He was a man we can all strive to be more like.

Yeah.....he is definitely missed.

Krak

Brett,

The first time I saw your dad he was scouting the Area Code games wearing his UCLA cap. I thought he must be a UCLA coach...I was quickly corrected by someone in the "know." He wore that cap for a reason...

I watched you play in college for UCLA. I was there for your last home game against Stanford last year and I spoke with your father before the game. He was so very, VERY proud of you and your accomplishments. He was beaming!

I often ran into him at Stanford games...in Palo Alto, Fresno, LA, wherever. Every time, every single time...we talked about you and your family. We didn't talk baseball that much...his family was the topic. He loved you all beyond what words can describe.

I will miss him very much in the coming years. We will all miss him. Please know that he touched a lot of lives very positively...but more than anything, he was a 'family-man.' For that alone, I respected him IMMENSELY!

You and your family members were the love of his life and nothing better could ever be said about a father. Carry him in your heart wherever you go...he is only a quiet conversation away.

God bless!

Tom Davis

Brett:

Thanks for posting. I have benefitted greatly from the advice of your Dad, as have my three sons. I had the pleasure of watching you play a couple of years ago against Arizona State at Packard Stadium. I was rooting for you and will continue to do so. Best of luck in your baseball career and in your life. I am sure the road will be filled with happiness largely because of the guidance provided by your Dad.

http://farmauthority.dcsportsnet.com/2007/05/24/rip-doug-mcmillan/

Brett ...

Had the opportunity to meet your dad several times in 2004 ... one was a planned meeting at UC Riverside when we both knew he would be there for the little RBI tourney that year. We met again by happenchance at a game at Sac State. I enjoyed speaking with him about the life of minor league players, and passed on his comments to our son for reference.

By the way, our son and you know each other as you were both on the Hyannis Mets in 2003. (He is AJ Shappi.) When we saw him last week in Mobile, I told him of Doug's passing. He was very sorry to hear the news and wants to express his condolences as well.

As others have commented, thank you for sharing with us as we all understand that this is a difficult time for you and your family. I pray that your wonderful memories of your dad will carry you through this difficult time, even tho we know that the loss will always be felt. God bless.

Mary Ann Shappi

Beemax, I am glad to hear that we were a source of strength for all of you. But please understand when I say that your Dad was a great source of strength for us, me particularly, with his guidance, class and integrity.
We certainly will miss him, but always will remember him.

Beemax, Deemax,
I was honored to have several e-mail exchanges with your father.
He always took the time to look at clips I would send to him.
I will miss him and he always talked about his sons when I asked how they were doing.
In my clip library I have several clips of Brett.
Also, he told me of your experience at Grand Canyon University. He was very proud of his sons and his family, not in a boastful way, just proud,,,,as I would be.
Just a great man in my book.
Again, I will miss him.