BANGOR — David Winkin leaned over to speak into his father's ear. Do you want to stand for the national anthem?

"Absolutely," said John Winkin.

So he did, some six months after the stroke that changed his 89-year-old life. With his son on one side and Mike Coutts, his longtime assistant coach on the other, Winkin got to his feet, leaving his wheelchair. His clear blue eyes fixed on the flag flying in center field.

In so many ways, John Winkin was home.

His appearance at the Larry Mahaney Senior Baseball All-Star Game at Husson College on Friday night was a surprise. He has thrown himself into his rehab, pushing physical therapists to push him. The use of his right arm and leg has not returned. His speech has.

Still, no one was sure Winkin would have the stamina to travel from a rehab facility in Waterville. The crowd at the ballpark that bears his name was in the dozens, not the hundreds.

None of that mattered to Winkin, of course. He was at a baseball game and he was alive.

"What choice did I have?" he said, referring to his fight. "I had two. I could live or I could die.

"If I get taken, I want people to know I still tried like hell."

He said he was invited to Friday night's game. It was only his second trip outside his room in the rehab facility. "I didn't know if I could be released (by his doctors). I'm glad they did."

Someone needed to present the Dr. John Winkin Award, otherwise known as Mr. Baseball, to the best high school senior in Maine. This year it went to Kyle Stilphen of Gardiner, an old-school ballplayer. A Winkin ballplayer.

Before the state championship game last weekend, Stilphen was spied taking batting practice at the high school field. His brother pitched, his girlfriend and father shagged flies. Mom was nearby. It was a scene from another time.

"I saw him when he was a sophomore," said Winkin. "The kid can play."

High praise from the man who coached former major-league players Billy Swift and Mike Bordick, and so many others who made the University of Maine one of the top teams in the Northeast year after year. And Stilphen knew it.

"It was an honor to see him here," said Stilphen. "I had no idea."

"I'm feeling pretty good," said Winkin to old friends. "I'm just about getting my mouth back."

He saw Tom Vanidestine, a Maine player from 25 years ago approach. "Tommy!" cried Winkin, and Vanidestine rushed to hug his old coach.

"I was nervous," said Vanidestine. "I didn't know if he would remember me or not. I didn't really know anything. But look at him. He's still full of it."

Winkin was a Navy officer in the Pacific when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. He played cards with Vince Lombardi when both coached at high schools in New Jersey nearly 60 years ago. He talked hitting with Ted Williams. After UMaine he moved crosstown to coach baseball at Husson. He was believed to be the oldest college coach in the country when he went out for one of his daily power walks near the Husson campus last December.

"I was really pushing it. Then, pow. I couldn't believe it."

He worked so hard for so long to keep his body in top shape. He must have felt betrayed.

"No," said Winkin. "All that work saved my life."

From the grandstand, Dick McQuestin of Charleston watched when Winkin was brought to the field, his wheelchair pushed by his son.

"It brings a tear to my eye," said McQuestin, who described himself as a baseball fan. "I was in foster homes as a boy. I dreamed of John Winkin adopting me.

Why not? Winkin adopted hundreds of boys. They called him Coach rather than Dad.

"I'm not going to quit," Winkin said before he left the game. "I'm going to try like hell to come back."

Staff Writer Steve Solloway can be contacted at 791-6412 or at:

ssolloway@pressherald.com