 07/31/2004 10:00 PM ET
Lucchino breaks down trade
Red Sox president/CEO discusses transaction
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By Mike Petraglia / Special to MLB.com |
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BOSTON -- If any baseball fan needed a reminder of the business side of the sport, the Red Sox provided a clear example Saturday when they traded one of their superstars at the trading deadline in an effort to bolster their playoff hopes.
Still, in trading Nomar Garciaparra to the Cubs in a four-team deal that landed the Red Sox a pair of Gold Glove winners in return, the front office is fully aware of the stunning impact the trade will have on the club's fan base.
"I think the fans are going to certainly miss [Nomar], as we will," said Red Sox president/CEO Larry Lucchino at Fenway Park, moments after he and general manager Theo Epstein announced their acquisition of Doug Mientkiewicz and Orlando Cabrera.
In addition to his unmistakable on-field presence since becoming Boston's full-time shortstop in 1997, Garciaparra established the "Nomar5" Foundation, generating over one million dollars for Boston and New England charities.
"Another feeling I have is one of respect and admiration for him. I think we owe him a debt of gratitude for his tremendous contributions to this franchise and to this community over the years he was here," said Lucchino.
Like any business executive involved in trading commodities, Lucchino understands that the best deal is one that helps all involved. He also understands the concept of making the best of a difficult situation. And with prospects of losing him to free agency at the end of the season, Lucchino said the baseball staff did their best with a star player under contract for just two more months.
"I think it's a good deal," said Lucchino. "I hope it's a win-win proposition and then we'll be able to make more deals like this with some of the trading partners involved in this deal, but I think in light of the contractual situation involved, we weren't going to let this thing play out and get nothing in return for a player of the stature of Nomar Garciaparra.
"I, like a lot of Boston fans, will miss Nomar Garciaparra. You certainly miss him until you get to know and appreciate the contributions of the new players. Do I have regrets that we weren't able to sign him? I do, to some degree. I think we made a very strong, good faith effort to sign him and I wish the long-term prospects of signing him were better than they were, but we had to be realistic enough to say that the likelihood of signing him here was not high," said Lucchino.
Lucchino also said the Red Sox were completely up front about the health of Garciaparra's right achilles' tendon, which kept him out of Friday's game in Minnesota.
"Theo made full disclosure to the Cubs in these negotiations regarding Nomar's condition and the potential of his limited availability in the second half," said Lucchino. "They understood that and accepted that and made the deal with their eyes wide open. So, I hope it proves to be a successful deal for all parties involved."
In the end, Lucchino said Saturday's blockbuster came down to letting his top baseball executive make a bold decision that will hopefully lead the team deep into the postseason.
"I also have a sense of optimism about the contributions these players are going to bring to this team. We didn't trade Nomar Garciaparra for two prospects who might help this team in 2007, we traded him for two solid Major League players who are going to play on this team (Saturday) and (Sunday). I think people will come to appreciate that what Theo did was address what he described as a fatal flaw on this team and deal with it.
"He diagnosed it properly and he took some bold action to make it better," said Lucchino.
Mike Petraglia is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
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