BOSTON (AP) – Two servicemen from Massachusetts – a Rockland Marine and a West Boylston soldier known for his love of baseball and military life – have been killed in Iraq, family members said Thursday.

Army Spc. Kyle A. Little, 20, was killed by a roadside bomb Tuesday north of Baghdad during his second tour in Iraq, according to his father, Michael Little of North Berwick, Maine.

On Wednesday, the Marines notified the family of Walter O’Haire that he had been killed in Iraq, according to his brother, Matthew O’Haire. He declined further comment.

The Pentagon said Lance Cpl. O’Haire, 20, died Wednesday in Anbar province. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.

Little’s wife, Tiffany, is expecting the couple’s child in November.

“That’s a blessing, that there’s some part of Kyle that’s still here,” Michael Little said.

Little was a baseball fanatic, who pitched on youth and school teams growing up, and sported a Boston Red Sox tattoo on his arm.

Little dropped out of high school, feeling it wasn’t the place for him, and joined the Army at age 17, a few months before he would have graduated, his mother, Shelly Smith, told the Telegram & Gazette of Worcester.

Little seemed to mature in the service, which he intended to make his career, his father said. He was working as a bodyguard during his second tour, Michael Little said.

“He was there because he wanted to be there, and he did what he liked to do,” he said.

Kyle Little was the oldest of five brothers and sisters.

O’Haire attended South Shore Vocational-Technical High School in Hanover.

Family friend Donna Ward-Milord told The Patriot Ledger of Quincy that O’Haire was likable and enjoyed helping others.

“He wanted to serve in Iraq,” she said. “He was excited about going into the Marines and helping his country.”

AP-ES-05-10-07 2021EDT

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