Loss of a shortshop

The erosion in the relationship between Red Sox management and star shortstop Nomar Garciaparra culminated Saturday in the trade of one of Boston's most popular baseball players since Ted Williams. Though trade rumors were plentiful, most fans were jarred by the reality that the two-time American League batting champion was bound for the Chicago Cubs, another ill-omened ballclub.

For what may amount to a marginal defensive upgrade, Red Sox fans will be denied the opportunity to cheer for one of the greatest players ever to put on the Red Sox uniform. General manager Theo Epstein said the trade would make the team more "functional." So much for electrifying, breathtaking and sensational, adjectives that often described Garciaparra's play over the better part of eight seasons with the Red Sox.

There is a fiction in baseball, especially since the advent of free agency, that it is all about the business.

But emotions permeate the game.

Garciaparra could not reconcile the fact that Red Sox ownership tried to replace him last year with a superior defensive shortstop, Alex Rodriguez. Sports pundits wondered if Garciaparra's damaged pride was more of a factor in his decision to sit out much of this season than his injured right Achilles' tendon. The player whose heart had never been seriously questioned since winning American League rookie honors in 1997 was suddenly made a problem child on a team in desperate need of stability and leadership.

The loss of Garciaparra might have been mitigated by the addition of a dominant starting pitcher. But Red Sox management will be hard-pressed to show how the loss of a five-time all-star is offset by a weaker hitting shortstop and first baseman. This trade does not have the feel of one that will cause fans to sing the praises of Red Sox ownership on cool October nights.

After two-and-a-half years, the new ownership team has just made the decision that tests its popularity with the enormous Red Sox fan base. The owners have been widely praised for their effective changes in the seating and amenities at Fenway Park.

And fans marveled at the way Epstein stocked the team with productive and comparatively low paid players before the 2003 season.

It won't be known for months whether the Garciaparra trade was a sound baseball decision. But the game is more than just the exchange of chess pieces.

It is already known that the most precious of commodities, customer goodwill, has sustained a severe blow.

In Boston, it's a good bet that fan favorites will be traded, sold or lost to free agency. Garciaparra now joins the likes of Mo Vaughn, Roger Clemens and Carlton Fisk. Red Sox fans are abidingly loyal. Ownership is equally fickle.