Nomar traded-20 years later

[bosockboy]

20 years today. I was in Las Vegas for work and saw the news in the sports book. Stunned beyond words.

View: https://twitter.com/steve_perrault/status/1818741381680292000?s=46

 

[Sandy Leon Trotsky]

Jesus! The wound just healed like yesterday and you go and post this shit!!!

 

[E5 Yaz]

July 31, 2004:
Traded as part of a 4-team trade by the Boston Red Sox with Matt Murton to the Chicago Cubs.
The Minnesota Twins sent Doug Mientkiewicz to the Boston Red Sox.
The Montreal Expos sent Orlando Cabrera to the Boston Red Sox.
The Chicago Cubs sent Francis Beltrán, Alex Gonzalez and Brendan Harris to the Montreal Expos.
The Chicago Cubs sent Justin Jones (minors) to the Minnesota Twins.

 

[Scoops Bolling]

I was in an airport and only saw the crawl. When I saw we'd traded Garciaparra and had received a guy named Cabrera, I was ecstatic because I thought it meant we had acquired Miguel Cabrera. I guess O-Cab worked out okay in the end, too.

 

[Lose Remerswaal]

Ah yes, the Justin Jones trade. We were returning from Europe and I asked the Customs guy how the Sox were looking and he almost yelled THEY JUST TRADED NOMAR!! He had more to declare than we did

 

[E5 Yaz]

July 31, 2004:
Dave Roberts traded by the Los Angeles Dodgers to the Boston Red Sox for Henri Stanley (minors).

 

[Petagine in a Bottle]

A masterful set of moves, even if it all felt quite underwhelming at the time. Man, the Expos didn’t get much out of this trade, did they?

 

[RedSoxFan]

Jesus! The wound just healed like yesterday and you go and post this shit!!!

Respectfully the wound healed on Oct 27, 2004.

 

[Sandy Leon Trotsky]

Respectfully the wound healed on Oct 27, 2004.

It closed then.

 

[Lose Remerswaal]

A masterful set of moves, even if it all felt quite underwhelming at the time. Man, the Expos didn’t get much out of this trade, did they?

Alex Gonzales ain't nothing. Depending on which Alex Gonzales that was

 

[Petagine in a Bottle]

Alex Gonzales ain't nothing. Depending on which Alex Gonzales that was

It was the other one- the one who did not play for the Sox. Although, he ended up with more career bWAR than the one I’m thinking of. So maybe our Alex Gonzalez was the other one?

Regardless, he wasn’t with the Expos long- they traded him to SF on Sept 16, 2004 as part of a conditional deal- unclear what they got in return. And then the Expos were the Nationals.

Les Expos played a pretty important role in a few big Sox deals, eh?

 

[bosockboy]

One of the Alex Gonzalez’ booted a double play ball in the Bartman game. Think that was ours.

 

[Petagine in a Bottle]

One of the Alex Gonzalez’ booted a double play ball in the Bartman game. Think that was ours.

To make this more confusing- both Alex Gonzalezes played in that game. Our guy was a Marlin for that one. He finished his career with 245/290/395, while the other one was 243/302/391.

 

[reggiecleveland]

I am ashamed how upset and gloomy I was at the time. I was sure Murton was the next Bagwell.
I am still amazed at how ballsy Theo and Tito were to win that title.

 

[Sin Duda]

My story was that I went upstairs to tuck my 6yo into bed. He had met Nomar 7 months earlier and was already a huge fan of his and of baseball. He had this computer game called Backyard Baseball and always played as Nomar. When I told my son the trade news, he threw himself off the bed onto the floor and writhed around in agony. Not good times.

 

[bg1025]

I was at a concert at The Meadows in Hartford. Couldn’t for the life of me tell you who was performing that day. I wore my Nomar t-shirt thinking some shit might go down with him as there had been speculation. My phone didn’t have internet so I kept periodically checking in with my dad at home to see what happened and he finally told me. I was heartbroken. Must’ve had 100 random people through the rest of the day trying to tell me he had been traded.

Edit: just looked it up. Linkin Park, Snoop Dogg, Korn, and others.

 

[riboflav]

My future wife and I, who had been living together for 4 months, were in our Boston apartment and she was doing her most to be into the Sox at the time bc she was not a sports fan at all but apparently liked me and I called her into the living room while Bob Lobel was on TV announcing the trade and seemingly almost teary and she said, "Maybe it's actually something like this to finally win." And, then in the playoffs she was a huge O-Cab fan... who apparently has a home in Windham, NH.

 

[reggiecleveland]

My future wife and I, who had been living together for 4 months, were in our Boston apartment and she was doing her most to be into the Sox at the time bc she was not a sports fan at all but apparently liked me and I called her into the living room while Bob Lobel was on TV announcing the trade and seemingly almost teary and she said, "Maybe it's actually something like this to finally win." And, then in the playoffs she was a huge O-Cab fan... who apparently has a home in Windham, NH.

This may be the greatest love story ever.

 

[riboflav]

This may be the greatest love story ever.

It is what I tell myself when we fight.

 

[jose melendez]

There was no reason to be confident at the time. It seemed like the team had short changed Nomar, Nomar had been a punk about it, and we'd lost our star. The fact that Nomar would never be the same wasn't at all evident.

It was an absolute masterstroke, but it was far from clear in the moment.

 

[biollante]

Although it all worked out, a base ball tragedy none the same.
Doesn't he have kids old enough to play now or did he never get Mia pregnant ?

 

[RG33]

I was at Good Harbor beach in Gloucester and was walking to the pissah in a Sox t-ahirt when a guy driving by in his car rolled his window down and just yelled “the Sox traded Nomah!!!” I proceeded to run back to my buddies at the beach telling everyone I could along the way.

 

[moretsyndrome]

I was at Good Harbor beach in Gloucester and was walking to the pissah in a Sox t-ahirt when a guy driving by in his car rolled his window down and just yelled “the Sox traded Nomah!!!” I proceeded to run back to my buddies at the beach telling everyone I could along the way.

That was my day, too, except it was a beach on Block Island and the guy who yelled the news was on foot. I didn’t believe it because I’d just watched Peter Gammons say nothing was happening but then my phone blew up with friends and relatives confirming and complaining.

 

[BoSox Rule]

One of the worst sports days of my life. Nomar and Pedro were the Red Sox, the end of 2003 sucked and we didn’t know what was going to be coming in the future. As a 15 year old you could not convince me that Nomar wasn’t going to get healthy and continue to be a .320 hitter for the rest of his career, but man he was just never the same after he peaked at like .340 slaying the ball over the park through July 23.

No regrets but make me pick a couple for 2004 and it’s Nomar wasn’t a middle of the order stud shortstop and Pedro was a shell of his self.

 

[snowmanny]

The Red Sox had a deadline trade where they sent out (ostensibly) the best player in the deal, the best prospect in the deal, and IIRC threw in cash. When does that happen?

 

[bosockboy]

IIRC it came about 20-30 mins after the deadline.

The ultimate quarter for two dimes and a nickel trade.

 

[Archer1979]

I logged in here for the first time as several outlets were saying that a baseball fan website called Sons of Sam Horn broke the news. Obviously I thought the trade was risky, but Nomar's behavior in July and ongoing injuries made it inevitable.

 

[lexrageorge]

IIRC, I was reading somewhere that the Twins were supposed to get another minor league prospect from the Red Sox in the deal, but they never added that in the final paperwork that the teams signed off on when submitting the proposal to the league office. One lazy reporter later used that along with the Kevin Millar signing as reasons why Theo was hated among other GMs, which was utter nonsense. But I was wondering if the reports about the "missing prospect" were correct?

 

[pinkhatfan]

My story was that I went upstairs to tuck my 6yo into bed. He had met Nomar 7 months earlier and was already a huge fan of his and of baseball. He had this computer game called Backyard Baseball and always played as Nomar. When I told my son the trade news, he threw himself off the bed onto the floor and writhed around in agony. Not good times.

My son was 8 and a huge Nomar fan. I learned about the trade when I turned the game on that night. My son was having a bath before bed and when I went up to tell him, I swear I thought he was going to drown, he was so upset.

 

[cornwalls@6]

I was at Good Harbor beach in Gloucester and was walking to the pissah in a Sox t-ahirt when a guy driving by in his car rolled his window down and just yelled “the Sox traded Nomah!!!” I proceeded to run back to my buddies at the beach telling everyone I could along the way.

I was also on the beach in Chatham, and one of my buddies I think called me with the news(a little foggy on whether it was a call or a text, though I think 2004 was before texting for me). I immediately ran back up to the house, and turned on the coverage. I was a big Nomar guy, and it was definitely a gut punch that afternoon. Obviously it all worked out spectacularly. But I still have a small pang of regret that he wasn’t part of that glorious October.

 

[RG33]

I was also on the beach in Chatham, and one of my buddies I think called me with the news(a little foggy on whether it was a call or a text, though I think 2004 was before texting for me). I immediately ran back up to the house, and turned on the coverage. I was a big Nomar guy, and it was definitely a gut punch that afternoon. Obviously it all worked out spectacularly. But I still have a small pang of regret that he wasn’t part of that glorious October.

Yeah, same. It always felt a bit off that he wasn’t part of it. When I first moved to California (2005) I used to work out with a group of guys in Carson, CA at the soccer stadium where the LA Galaxy played — and a couple of times Nomar was there on the treadmill next to me (probably 2006-2007). I always abided by the “don’t talk to the athletes rule” but one time I had a Sox t-shirt on and he noticed and gave me a wry smile and a head nod. It took everything in my power not to go over to him and just hug him aggressively. He was my guy and the “gut punch” you describe was real.

 

[wiffleballhero]

I was sitting in my apartment in Seattle -- Fremont. I don't really remember what time of day it was, but I had a home office in our apartment's second bedroom. I was sitting in there and just couldn't believe it. That video of Nomar talking to the press in the hallway there is like seared into my brain. And the whole thing with Mientkiewicz just switching locker rooms was so weird.

 

[103mph Screwball]

Played against Brendan Harris in high school. Hit one of the longest home runs I've ever seen hit off me. I was sure he was going to be the best player to come out of Upstate NY.
As far as the trade, I was beside myself. One of my favorite players of all time, I couldn't believe they'd trade him, especially for what felt like peanuts at the time. I try to remember that feeling anytime the team trades someone, because I suppose you never know how it'll work out.

 

[bankshot1]

The Nomar trade hurt. I won't lie, HURT.

It was like the Marcus trade.

The only Sox jersey I ever had was a Sox #5 with my name on the back, that Fleet Bank handed out at an investor meeting held at Fenway about 2 weeks after the '99 ALCS and shortly after the WS. There were a lot of MFY fans at that dinner as well. To those smirking pricks I say NOMAH was better!

I still have the shirt and like to think that I've outgrown the experience. I've certainly outgrown the shirt.

 

[Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat]

One of the Alex Gonzalez’ booted a double play ball in the Bartman game. Think that was ours.

Need to be fair to Sea Bass...that was the other Alex Gonzalez

 

[ookami7m]

I was at work at the dealership with my MFY fan manager and another fan of theirs when one of the guys in service saw the news on the TV and came up to tell me (good man). These are the same two who made the day after Boone's HR memorable in a bad way for me. So they were crowing and saying how the Sox were giving up and all that off season's work was for naught.

I was mostly quiet as I remember, having no real response beyond "in Theo we trust". I went home and told my wife (wasn't a big texter back then) who wasn't a baseball fan other than through me and she asked me, "Does this mean that they have no chance?" and after a few hours of processing time the best I had was, "In Theo we trust, he's gotten us this far."

Nomar was my guy, like so many of us, and that trade was pain. Even though we all saw the injuries and the fading defense (and to a lesser extent offense), Nomah was the Sox. I wouldn't take it back now, but that was the most skeptical I had ever been of Sox management in my life.

 

[Shaky Walton]

I distinctly remember being shocked but not shocked by the Nomar trade. As great as he was — he was better than Jeter while healthy in my opinion — he had turned so sour and his defense was wanting.

Who knew that Cabrerra, Roberts and to a lesser extent, Minky, would be so key to the championship? I venture to say that no one really did.

There can never be enough threads about 2004.

 

[astrozombie]

Since the whole A-Rod non-trade, 2004 Nomar was just a different person and who could blame him? My sense at the time was he was hurt by the whole thing and was hoping/expecting the Sox to do right by him somehow. That they ended up trading him instead was a huge shock to everyone, Nomar included.
I was sad to see Nomar go, but there were just some bad vibes and bad blood. Thinking back on it now, if the Sox failed to win in 2004 at all the points where they would have fallen short in the past (the A-Rod chop, Dave Roberts caught stealing, Schilling unable to go in the bloody sock game, etc) that FO would have been excoriated and I am not sure how long a leash Epstein would have got. That they won saved them from the fallout of the trade, even more than Nomar just not being very good after 2004.

 

[Big Papi's Mango Salsa]

What a set of stones Theo has / had to make a deal like that. As mentioned by others, this was a scenario where the Red Sox were "clearly" giving up the best player in the deal, and one of the franchise icons.

As an aside, wasn't this one of those odd situations where the Sox were playing the Twins over the deadline, and EyeChart literally had to walk across the hall to report to his new team.

 

[SumnerH]

Although it all worked out, a base ball tragedy none the same.
Doesn't he have kids old enough to play now or did he never get Mia pregnant ?

Twin daughters and a son. One of the daughters is captain of the high school soccer team. Son is 12 years old.

 

[brandonchristensen]

I was on my last family vacation at Universal City Walk.
Walked into a sports store and they had ESPN on and I saw it on the ticker.

devastated.

I got back to my hotel and jumped on SOSH.

 

[RS2004foreever]

I was preparing a slide deck in a hotel room in Milan for a presentation that day, and I clicked on ESPN.
I was so pissed. I mean after the debacle on '03 and then they do THIS?
Seldom has the phrase Alls well that ends well ever been more appropriate.

 

[Erik Hanson's Hook]

I was at The Last Dispatch in Boston, in the process of breaking up with my girlfriend. We're good friends now and she laughs about how more heartbroken I was over Nomar.

When he first came up I was 17 and had newspaper clippings all over my wall. Still wear #5 because of him.

 

[John Marzano Olympic Hero]

I was at a SoSH outing at the New Hampshire Fisher Cats game. We were pregaming at a Chinese food restaurant when the news game through and everyone was gobsmacked.

Then we went into the game, I saw Al Caprelian trying to sign autographs (no one was stopping by and he looked sad and lonely) at a card table and I said to LTF, "I have to get a picture of this!" and I ran back to my car for a camera (you see kids, back in those days cameras weren't a part of a lot of phones). But when I came running back to the gate, he was gone. I turned my head to see an angry Caprelian in the passenger side of a car as he was driven back to his WNDS TV-50 home by his handler? Station intern? Hanger-on?

Anyways, what I'm trying to say is that a lot of really depressing things happened that day. Nomar had to move to Chicago and I never got a picture with super celebrity weatherman Al Caprelian.

 

[teddywingman]

I was camping in the Gros Ventre mountains (south of the Tetons) so I didn't hear about the trade for a couple days.

I was fine with it, as my love of Nomar had soured. The game where Jeter dove into the stands while Nomar just sat and watched had made an unfair impression.

 

[santadevil]

To make this more confusing- both Alex Gonzalezes played in that game. Our guy was a Marlin for that one. He finished his career with 245/290/395, while the other one was 243/302/391.

The other funny thing is when you look at Alex Gonzalez (trade by CHI), his similarity scores are are mostly tied to Álex González


I remember being stunned at the trade, but was busy with life at the time, still playing some summer baseball myself and getting ready for my next stage of life
My teammates all bugged me about the trade, but I was mostly okay with it, especially the OCab part. I still followed the Expos fairly closely with my Dad and he said the Sox just got the best defensive shortstop in the game
I figured Eyechart was a decent enough player, but thought the Sox gave up the most

 

[JackClarks34oz]

I had dragged my parents on a family vacation to Minneapolis to watch the Sox. I had been telling them all about the cast of characters on the Sox, and why this year they may be good enough. We were driving in to the stadium for the game when we heard the news on the car radio. I couldn’t believe Nomar was gone and even more that Alphabet was switching dugouts in the middle of a series.

 

[Curt S Loew]

I had dragged my parents on a family vacation to Minneapolis to watch the Sox. I had been telling them all about the cast of characters on the Sox, and why this year they may be good enough. We were driving in to the stadium for the game when we heard the news on the car radio. I couldn’t believe Nomar was gone and even more that Alphabet was switching dugouts in the middle of a series.

Eye Chart.

 

[GB5]

I recall being irrationally pissed that we were trading Nomar who I thought was the best player in the trade and the biggest name….and somehow needed to add Murton which I was apoplectic about because he seemed like a legit prospect..

 

[Archer1979]

Just curious on something, is the original SoSH thread that broke the news still available or did it not survive the EZBoard meltdown of 2005?