Nomar no more in Boston

By Jim Callis
July 31, 2004

The biggest trade at the deadline also involved the biggest name. Nomar Garciaparra, one of the most accomplished and beloved players in Red Sox history, moved to the Cubs in an eight-player, four-team transaction on Saturday. Boston also gave up high Class A outfielder Matt Murton and cash to Chicago, receiving Orlando Cabrera from the Expos and Doug Mientkiewicz from the Twins. The Cubs sent Alex Gonzalez and a pair of Triple-A prospects (infielder Brendan Harris, righthander Francis Beltran) to Montreal, plus low Class A lefthander Justin Jones to Minnesota.

The deal makes sense for all four sides. The Cubs made a major upgrade to their lineup without giving up a significant part of their big league club, and now look like the favorites in the National League wild-card race. Garciaparra was unhappy in Boston and probably wasn't coming back next year as a free agent, and the Red Sox were able to use him to significantly strengthen their defense, their biggest weakness. Cabrera had turned down a long-term extension to stay with the Expos, who added two good prospects who are on the verge of being ready for the majors. The Twins needed to get rookie first baseman Justin Morneau's bat in their lineup, making Mientkiewicz expendable.

Garciaparra, 31, is one of the best shortstops in baseball history. A five-time all-star and two-time American League batting champion, he provides exceptional offense for his position. Though he has been bothered by tendinitis in his right Achilles tendon this year, he has hit .321/.367/.500 with five homers and 21 RBIs in 38 games since returning to the lineup. He has been slowed by his injury, but when healthy he's a basestealing threat and has above-average range at shortstop. He owns a strong arm, though he has been slow to react to balls in the field in recent weeks. Garciaparra is making $12 million this year in the final season of a seven-year, $44.25 million contract. He's a career .323/.370/.553 hitter with 178 homers, 690 RBIs and 84 steals in 966 games.

Like Garciaparra, the 22-year-old Murton was a first-round pick (supplemental in 2003) out of Georgia Tech. One of the top hitters in a thin Boston farm system, he hit .301/.372/.452 with 11 homers and 55 RBIs in 102 games at high Class A Sarasota this year. He should hit for power and average, and his lone weakness is a throwing arm that relegates him to left field. He has batted .296/.373/.434 with 13 homers and 84 RBIs in 155 pro games.

Cabrera, 29, is having his worst season as a major leaguer but the Red Sox hope he'll snap out of it now that he's free from Montreal. After hitting .297/.347/.460 with 17 homers and 80 RBIs in 162 games last year, he has slumped to .246/.298/.336 with four homers and 31 RBIs in 103 games. Cabrera is capable of being an above-average offensive shortstop, and he's also an effective basestealer with 12 swipes this year and a career 76 percent success rate. There's little question about his defense. A 2001 Gold Glover, he covers more ground than Garciaparra and also has a strong arm and sure hands. Cabrera is making $6 million and will be a free agent at season's end. In 904 career games, he has hit .267/.315/.405 with 66 homers, 381 RBIs and 93 steals.

Mientkiewicz, 29, is an average offensive first baseman with slick defensive skills that earned him a Gold Glove in 2001. He has struggled this year while battling a sore left wrist that put him on the disabled list for two weeks earlier this month. He's batting .246/.340/.363 with five homers and 25 RBIs in 78 games. He's a line-drive, gap hitter with good patience at the plate. He stands out more defensively with excellent range and the ability to save errors by digging throws out of the dirt. Mientkiewicz will become Boston's regular first baseman, with Kevin Millar moving to right field and David Ortiz becoming a full-time DH. He's making $2.8 million in the first year of a three-year, $7 million contract that includes a $3.75 million salary or $450,000 buyout for 2006. He's a career .275/.367/.408 hitter with 43 homers and 266 RBIs in 643 games.

Harris, 23, was a 2001 fifth-round pick out of William & Mary. He's ready to take over at third base for the Expos as soon as they've decided they've had enough of Tony Batista. Harris consistently has hit .300 with gap power in the minors and has started to hit more homers this year. He missed the beginning of the season after doctors discovered a small tear in cartilage in his left knee during spring training. Since returning, he has batted .311/.353/.531 with 11 homers (four off his career high) and 35 RBIs in 69 games. He also got his first taste of the majors, going 2-for-9 in three games with the Cubs. Harris is athletic and has a strong arm to go with average speed. Harris has seen action at second base, third base and shortstop. In the minors, he has career totals of .304/.372/.488 with 35 homers and 174 RBIs in 344 games.

Beltran, 24, signed out of the Dominican Republic in 1996. After being bothered by a shoulder strain in 2003, he rebounded over the winter, winning MVP honors as the closer on the Dominican's Caribbean Series championship club. He has the stuff to close in the big leagues as well, owning a mid-90s fastball, mid-80s slider and a splitter. To eventually earn that role, he'll have to improve his location, cutting down on the walks and homers he allows. Beltran spent most of the season in the majors with the Cubs, going 2-2, 4.63 in 34 games. He had a 40-22 strikeout-walk ratio in 35 innings, while opponents batted .214 with eight homers. He has a career mark of 2-2, 5.36 in 45 big league appearances.

Gonzalez, 31, is really an afterthought for the Expos, who will let him keep their shortstop position warm before letting him go as a free agent when his four-year, $20 million contract expires at the end of this season. He has good pop for a shortstop and is an asset on defense, though he doesn't hit for average and is too aggressive at the plate. Sidelined by a fractured right wrist for 10 weeks earlier this season, he has hit .217/.241/.367 with three homers and eight RBIs in 37 games. For his career, he has batted .242/.303/.393 with 124 homers, 478 RBIs and 94 steals in 1,220 contests.

Jones, 19, was a 2002 second-round pick from a Virginia high school. Considered the top lefty in the Cubs system, he has a huge ceiling but has had problems staying healthy the last two years at low Class A Lansing. He was shut down twice with a tired arm in 2003, and missed the first month of 2004 with a sore elbow. When he's 100 percent, Jones has an 89-94 mph fastball and a plus curveball to go with a changeup and splitter. In 14 starts this year, he has gone 3-3, 3.78 with a 59-22 K-BB ratio, .254 opponent average and six homers in 64 innings. He has gone 10-9, 2.65 in 42 pro starts.