1973
Born July 23, 1973
Whittier, CA, USA
Nomar Garciaparra Marquee
b. July 23, 1973 · Boston Red Sox 1996–2004, Chicago Cubs 2004–2005, Los Angeles Dodgers 2006–2008, Oakland Athletics 2009
He hit .357 in 1999 and .372 in 2000, both the best in the American League, from shortstop, and was Rookie of the Year in 1997 with 209 hits, 30 home runs and a 30-game hitting streak. For five years he was compared with Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez as though the three of them were one argument.
Fourteen seasons gave him 1,747 hits, 229 home runs, 370 doubles and a .313 average, with six All-Star selections. A wrist injury in 2001 cost him most of that season and some of what came after, and the ritual of tightening and re-tightening his batting gloves between pitches is what a generation of children imitated.
Boston traded him to the Cubs on the last day of July in 2004 and won the World Series in October without him, which is the fact his Boston career now sits inside. He was Comeback Player of the Year for the Dodgers in 2006. Two ballots, in 2015 and 2016, gave him 30 votes and then 8.
Honors
| Award | Times | Years |
|---|---|---|
| All-Star selection | 6 | 1997, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2006 |
| Player of the Week | 6 | 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2006 |
| The Sporting News All-Star | 2 | 1997, 1999 |
| Comeback Player of the Year | 1 | 2006 |
| MLB Players Choice Comeback Player | 1 | 2006 |
| MLB Players Choice Outstanding Rookie | 1 | 1997 |
| Player of the Month | 1 | 1999 |
| Rookie of the Year | 1 | 1997 |
| Silver Slugger | 1 | 1997 |
| The Sporting News Comeback Player of the Year | 1 | 2006 |
| The Sporting News Rookie Player of the Year | 1 | 1997 |
Batting, season by season
| Year | Team | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | BOS | 24 | 87 | 11 | 21 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 16 | 4 | 14 | 5 | .241 |
| 1997 | BOS | 153 | 684 | 122 | 209 | 44 | 11 | 30 | 98 | 35 | 92 | 22 | .306 |
| 1998 | BOS | 143 | 604 | 111 | 195 | 37 | 8 | 35 | 122 | 33 | 62 | 12 | .323 |
| 1999 | BOS | 135 | 532 | 103 | 190 | 42 | 4 | 27 | 104 | 51 | 39 | 14 | .357 |
| 2000 | BOS | 140 | 529 | 104 | 197 | 51 | 3 | 21 | 96 | 61 | 50 | 5 | .372 |
| 2001 | BOS | 21 | 83 | 13 | 24 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 0 | .289 |
| 2002 | BOS | 156 | 635 | 101 | 197 | 56 | 5 | 24 | 120 | 41 | 63 | 5 | .310 |
| 2003 | BOS | 156 | 658 | 120 | 198 | 37 | 13 | 28 | 105 | 39 | 61 | 19 | .301 |
| 2004 | BOS/CHC | 81 | 321 | 52 | 99 | 21 | 3 | 9 | 41 | 24 | 30 | 4 | .308 |
| 2005 | CHC | 62 | 230 | 28 | 65 | 12 | 0 | 9 | 30 | 12 | 24 | 0 | .283 |
| 2006 | LAD | 122 | 469 | 82 | 142 | 31 | 2 | 20 | 93 | 42 | 30 | 3 | .303 |
| 2007 | LAD | 121 | 431 | 39 | 122 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 59 | 31 | 41 | 3 | .283 |
| 2008 | LAD | 55 | 163 | 24 | 43 | 9 | 0 | 8 | 28 | 15 | 11 | 1 | .264 |
| 2009 | OAK | 65 | 160 | 17 | 45 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 16 | 8 | 28 | 2 | .281 |
| Career | — | 1434 | 5586 | 927 | 1747 | 370 | 52 | 229 | 936 | 403 | 554 | 95 | .313 |
On this day & linked events
1996
Major-league debut: Nomar Garciaparra
Nomar Garciaparra made a major-league debut on August 31, 1996.
1999
Nomar Garciaparra's Three-Home-Run Game, 1999
Nomar Garciaparra hit three home runs for the Boston Red Sox against the Seattle Mariners on May 10, 1999.
2002
Nomar Garciaparra's Three-Home-Run Game, 2002
Nomar Garciaparra hit three home runs for the Boston Red Sox against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on July 23, 2002.
2009
Final major-league game: Nomar Garciaparra
Nomar Garciaparra played a final major-league game on October 4, 2009.
Image: Dlz28 on en.wikipedia, public domain