by By RON BORGES , The Boston Herald

Nomar Garciaparra, on the verge of becoming the Red Sox' perennial All-Star shortstop, reached in and hugged Williams, saying, `You're the man.''

``One day, they'll call you the man,'' Williams said.

Last night, for a few brief minutes, they did. Things had not turned out the way Williams, Garciaparra or Red Sox Nation thought they would, his career in Boston ending abruptly on July 31, 2004, in what would be general manager Theo Epstein's boldest move, bolder even than the unloading of Manny Ramirez.

Garciaparra didn't even get the chance to say goodbye when he was shipped off to the Chicago Cubs in a trade some believe was the catalyst that propelled the Sox to their first World Series victory in 86 years. Whatever the truth of that, one thing is undeniable: Since Nomar left what appeared to be a Hall of Fame career has foundered on the rocky shoals of injury and the vagaries of the business of Baseball.

Yet none of that mattered as he strode to the plate around 7:30 last night. Before he could step into the batter's box and begin his St. Vitus dance of tugs, pulls and toe taps, the crowd began to stand, the voices roaring out the fans' feelings.

Garciaparra waved his Oakland A's batting helmet and the roar grew louder. He turned from side to side, acknowledging each part of the park with a wave. The roar increased. Then, his head bowed from the emotion of what he was receiving, he turned and patted his heart and then clapped back.

``When I got traded I was on the road and never got to say, `Thank you,' '' Garciaparra said at a jam-packed pregame press conference. ``Hopefully, the way I thanked them throughout all those years when I was here was just going out there and playing hard and giving it everything I've got.''

What he gave last night as he tapped his heart was more. He gave them a piece of himself, a piece he too often kept hidden during his 7 1/2 years here. As the seasons passed and he was thrust into a position he was not comfortable with as spokesman for a team that never could quite win it all, he withdrew more and more, his emotions sealed inside.

Last night, at least for a few moments, the emotions came out. He loved them back and so, despite the way it ended, it seemed to make sense when he said, ``The minute I put that uniform on I always had a dream I was going to start my career in a Boston uniform and stop my career in a Boston uniform. I still have that dream. The only difference from the original dream is that I wasn't supposed to put another uniform on. But that dream is still there.''

The dream might still be there, but Garciaparra has become a Baseball vagabond. He played with the Cubs, then moved on to his hometown Los Angeles Dodgers and now is in Oakland, where he has become, by his own admittance, ``a utility guy.''

No longer ``The Man'' Williams thought he would become but one capable of understanding what he'd once had here, while making clear that for all his wanderings there have been moments in other places, too.

``I don't judge my years as a player strictly by the numbers,'' he said, despite having hit .323 here with the Red Sox while earning two batting titles, then averaging .287 in the five years since. ``There are certain experiences I had that were unbelievable.''

One of those experiences came when he first put on a Dodgers uniform and stepped on the field at Chavez Ravine. It was the place where he saw his first game, the team his parents rooted for until he joined the Red Sox .

Maybe things there weren't like they had been here, but, ``I got to play catch with my father at Dodger Stadium. That was as special moment for me.''

Last night was another, the moment he returned for the first time to where it all began. His home was LA but, in a sense, Nomar Garciaparra was home again, and people who felt they knew him well had something to tell him.

The best part was, as it turned out, he had something to tell them back.

- rborges@bostonherald.com

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