Nomar Retires from #MLB as a member of the #RedSox, Joins ESPN as a Baseball Analyst

The Boston Red Sox today signed shortstop Nomar Garciaparra to a minor league contract. Immediately following the agreement, Garciaparra announced his retirement.

The announcements were made by Executive Vice President/General Manager Theo Epstein and Garciaparra.

"From the first day I had the thrill of putting on a Red Sox uniform and playing in front of all the great fans at Fenway Park, I have felt at home in Boston,” said Garciaparra. “While I had the privilege of playing with other legendary teams, I always saw myself retiring in a Red Sox uniform. Today I am honored to live that dream thanks to Mr. Henry, Mr. Werner, Mr. Lucchino, Theo, and this wonderful organization. I thank my family, friends, teammates, fans and all who have supported me throughout this wonderful journey."

“Nomar will always hold a special place in Red Sox history and in the hearts of Red Sox Nation. His accomplishments on the field and in the community place him among the greatest players to wear a Red Sox uniform,” said Principal Owner John Henry. “We are very appreciative that Nomar is ending his career where it began.”

“It was always special to watch the fans cheer when Nomar came to the plate. He gave us some of Fenway’s greatest moments and will forever be a special part of the team’s history,” said Chairman Tom Werner. “We wish Nomar, his wife Mia, and their twin daughters all the best as they enter the next chapter in their lives.”

“We are pleased that Nomar Garciaparra feels such an enduring pride in, respect for, and connection to the Boston Red Sox and Red Sox Nation. I believe I can speak for our entire organization and our passionate fan base and say those sentiments are mutual; we feel the same pride, respect, and connection to Nomar,” said President/CEO Larry Lucchino. “Welcome home, Nomar.”

Garciaparra, 36, owns a .313 (1,747-for-5,586) batting average, 229 homers and 936 RBI in 1,434 career games over 14 Major League campaigns with the Red Sox (1996-2004), Cubs (2004-05), Dodgers (2006-08) and Athletics (2009). During his nine seasons in Boston he compiled a .323 (1,281-for-3,968) batting average, 178 homers and 690 RBI in 966 games. He is fourth in club history in career batting average and fifth in slugging (.553) among players with at least 1,500 at-bats. Garciaparra also ranks among Boston’s top 15 in career doubles (9th, 279), extra-base hits (9th, 507), home runs (11th, 178), total bases (11th, 2,194), runs (12th, 709) and hits (14th, 1,281).

The right-handed hitter finished among the top 10 in American League Most Valuable Player voting five times with Boston, including four straight from 1997-2000. He is one of six players in Red Sox history to earn AL Rookie of the Year honors after hitting .306 (209-for-684) with 122 runs, 44 doubles, 30 homers, 98 RBI and 22 steals in 1997. He was voted onto six All-Star teams including five with Boston and started at shortstop in the 1999 contest at Fenway Park.

He joins Wade Boggs (1985-88), Carl Yastrzemski (1967-68) and Ted Williams (1941-42, 47-48, 57-58) as the only players in Red Sox history to earn AL batting titles in consecutive seasons, doing so in 1999 (.357) and 2000 (.372). His .372 average in 2000 is the fourth highest in club single-season history. Garciaparra owns the 19th-highest career batting average in Major League history among players with at least 200 career home runs.

He ranked second in the AL with a .325 (1,210-for-3,725) batting average from 1997-2003, including a league-best .337 (791-for-2,349) mark over the first four years of that span. During his time with Boston he tallied 100 runs six times, 100 RBI four times and 25 homers 4 times, including a career-high 35 in 1998.

Garciaparra appeared in 32 playoff games over the course of his career, batting .321 (36-for-112) with seven homers and 24 RBI. He hit .323 (31-for-96) with seven homers and 21 RBI in 25 postseason contests with Boston.

He was originally selected by the Red Sox with the 12th overall pick in first round of the 1994 First-Year Player Draft out of Georgia Tech. He was dealt to the Cubs as part of a four-team trade on July 31, 2004.

---RED SOX COMMUNICATIONS---

ESPN later announced Nomar has been hired to be a baseball analyst . Here is the release for that.

ESPN:Nomar Joins ESPN

Hit Like A Girl, Volume 1-An Introduction and Nomar

(Editor's Note:Samantha Lewis is going to be writing a weekly column for the CMSB, aptly titled "Hit Like a Girl". She is the Creative Director of Northshore Editorial in Salem, MA and can be followed on Twitter right here)

When Matt asked me if I wanted to write about sports from a “female’s perspective” I instantly agreed, thinking about how cool it was.

Then I spent two weeks trying to figure out what the hell that meant.

As far as female fans go, I don’t know as much as someone like the Boston Globe’s Amalie Benjamin; then again, I’m certainly not running around with a pink Sox hat talking about how nice Mike Lowell’s butt looks in his baseball pants.

Even if it does look pretty good.

I watch almost every Sox game – in part because doing so is the only way I see my boyfriend during baseball season, and in part because when I don’t watch baseball on a game night I don’t know what else to do with myself. I couldn’t tell you Beckett’s ERA or Varitek’s OBP, but I can tell you that Nick Green’s mouth looks very odd when he’s concentrating, that Papebon’s stare is made of awesome, and that Kevin Youkilis shakes his butt when he’s at bat. You know, the important details of the game that distinguish the true fan from the dilettante.

I should confess that I was raised a Yankees fan. My family is from New York, and as a result I’m sure there are enough pictures of me in Yankees gear to wallpaper a small room. Maybe a large room. However, these days my dad seems to be cursing the fact that he encouraged me to go to school near Boston. He thinks I’ve caught a contagion.

My secret love affair with the Boston Red Sox began in 2006. A year later, the relationship deepened. On Mother’s Day of 2007 I went to my first Sox game. The Sox scored 6 runs in the 9th inning to win the game. That game was my first. No woman ever forgets her first. I refused to wear the Red Sox hat that my friend brought for me that day, but the moment I got into Fenway Park I may as well have been decked out in Sox gear. There’s a certain feeling in Fenway and among Boston fans that perhaps I’m more susceptible as a female. Maybe it’s all those wonky hormones floating around. Maybe it’s just that the Sox and Fenway are the heart and soul of New England. Any doubt I had about being a Sox fan dissipated as I drank beers, ate Fenway franks, sang Sweet Caroline, and screamed “Go Sox!”

Last week I got the same rush. Nomar was back in Fenway! I wasn’t even a Sox fan when Nomar played, and I have no recollections of him as a member of the Red Sox. I couldn’t even tell you how his butt looked in baseball pants, but I had the fever. When he stepped onto the field to a standing ovation, I understood exactly what he meant to Sox fans. It’s the same way fans cheered for Papi when he continually struck out at the beginning of the season, the same way that the park fills with screams for “Yoooooooouk!” Nomar reminds us of the reasons for our fandom, and on July 6th I was reminded why, despite threats from my family, I started rooting for the Red Sox. Once you’re a member of Red Sox Nation – we’ll always love you. We’ve got heart.

Unless you get traded to the Yankees. Sorry Johnny Damon, your hair was cool, your butt was never much anyways.

TUESDAY MORNING QUICK HITTERS

Nomar in his return to Fenway for the 1st time since the trade in 2004 (Courtesy Boston.com)

• The New Hampshire Fisher Cats put down a rehabbing Jed Lowrie and the Sea Dogs 6 - 5 in New Hampshire.
• John Smoltz gave up 5 runs, and former Portland Sea Dog Aaron Bates made his Major League debut in a 6 - 0 loss to the Oakland A's.
• Boston Bruins defenseman Matt Hunwick filed for arbitration.