Garciaparra was heart and soul, and Fenway Faithful remember

July 07, 2009|Dan Shaughnessy, Globe Columnist

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“Here, there’s so much passion, so much emotion,’’ he started. “What gets lost is the business side. The business side comes into it and the business side isn’t always pretty. It was even new to me. Stuff to me that I didn’t know and when it all went down it just surprised me. It’s an unfortunate part, but that’s the reality of baseball.’’

Mass media is another part of the reality - a particularly unpleasant dimension for the young Nomar in Boston. This is the man who ordered a red line in front of player lockers in Fenway’s home clubhouse. Woe was the scribe who crossed the Nomar-Momar line of death.

“I learned a lot,’’ Garciaparra said. “Would I have done things differently? Sure. Definitely would have done things differently. I would have done things different, probably handling this [media] a little bit different. And it’s helped me grow.’’

In that moment, he sounded a little like an aging Ted Williams. The Splinter had legendary feuds with the Knights of the Keyboard when he played and late in life he said he probably could have handled it better.

Does Nomar wish he played his entire career here?

“Always,’’ said Garciaparra. “The minute I put that uniform on, I always had a dream I was going to start my career in a Boston uniform and end my career in a Boston uniform. I still have the dream. The only difference from the original dream is that I wasn’t supposed to put another uniform on. But that dream is still there.’’

Never say never. Fact is, the 2009 Red Sox could use a spare part like the new Nomar.

Dan Shaughnessy can be reached at dshaughnessy@globe.com.

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