I wake up every morning, check my twitter account to see what stories of interest come around. First one was the death of actor Corey Haim, star of such 80’s films as Lost Boys, License to Drive, and Lucas. Part of the most succesful same-name duo in entertainment (excluding The Mark Brothers in the early 1980’s for the Dolphins), this news saddened me. The next piece of news I saw was Nomar Garciaparra signing a one day deal so he could retire as a member of the Boston Red Sox.

This happened to jog my memory back to the summer of 2004, when the Red Sox traded Nomar in a four team deal that sent him to the wild card leading Chicago Cubs. The Red Sox received Orlando Cabrera and Doug Mientkiewicz. We all know what happened later that year. Nomar was still, and has continued to be recognized by Red Sox Nation as a fundamental part to team that won it all in ‘04 for what he brought to Boston in his early career. The stats speak for themselves, with a batting average of .323, 1281 hits, 178 home runs, an AL Rookie of the Year award and a 6 time All-Star. Fans came to appreciate him, referring to him a No-mah in his 8 1/2 years in Boston.

Towards the end of his career as a Red Sox, his production began to slip and Boston was looking for defense so the trade came. That didn’t stop fans to continue their support for him as he became a journeyman, going from Chicago, to the LA Dodgers, and ultimately Oakland. All he could really be used for was a mentor to younger guys coming up, as he was never able to regain the form he had early in his career. But Nomar always loved the Red Sox organization and the city of Boston as he mentioned in his press conference. He wanted to retire as a Boston Red Sox. With his retirement on Wednesday, Boston said “Welcome home Nomar, welcome home.”