If he is a liar, he is a magnificent one. A man could not speak with more apparent conviction than he did when he made the famous honeymoon phone call to WEEI proclaiming his fidelity to Boston (and, by extension, the Red Sox). No matter how many second- and third-hand conversations were repeated to the contrary, not once in his time in Boston did Nomar Garciaparra ever say publicly that he was unhappy with any aspect of his life here.
He embraced Boston. Did you catch his Q & A in the Sunday Globe Magazine a few weeks back? He was Mr. Chamber of Commerce, happily revealing his favorite haunts. And anyone who has made the trip through the new parking garage overpasses at Logan Airport these past several months knows that the voice greeting you belongs to Nomar Garciaparra. Not Tom Menino, not Keith Lockhart, not Ben Affleck. The man chosen to speak for all of Boston was Nomar Garciaparra.
No player in recent Red Sox history has bonded better with the fans. He played the precise kind of aggressive baseball geared to ensure popularity. His mistakes were those of passion, not apathy. He seldom walked because he saw more value in hitting the baseball. Purists simmered over his disappointing on-base percentage, and many were frustrated by his propensity for swinging at the first pitch (a tactic that served him very well), but Joe Average simply loved his approach to the game. He ran out every ground ball, every popup, and every routine fly ball. He tried to make impossible plays in the field, when eating the baseball might have been the better decision. He just flat-out played hard. And the fans loved him for it.
Autographs? No player signed more. No player made it clearer to the Boston fans that he appreciated their support.
