Nomar Garciaparra ended his MLB career where it began; with the Boston Red Sox. As one of the most beloved Sox in recent history, his desire to return to Boston to finish his career was granted earlier today when he signed a one-day minor league contract with the Red Sox and then announced his retirement from baseball as a member of the team he has always missed. He will transition to the broadcast booth as a member of the EPSN “Baseball Tonight” crew as well as an occasional game analyst.

The contract gave him the opportunity to show his appreciation to the Boston fans whom he has always missed and have missed him since 2004. He was selected in the first round of the 1994 Draft and played shortstop in Boston before moving to the corner infield positions. Most of his career accolades were earned while in a Boston uniform and something was obviously missing from him, on and off the field, since he left.

Garciaparra’s best years were clearly in Boston. He spent nine years with the club before being traded to the Cubs just months before Boston won their first World Series since 1918. He has a career .313 batting average. He also cracked 229 home runs, 178 of which in a Sox uniform, and 936 RBI. He was voted AL Rookie of the Year in 1997 and finished second in the MVP race in 1998. He was a six-time All-Star and two-time AL batting champion, doing so in 1999 and 2000.

It was a classy move by both Boston and Garciaparra. While some might see it as a slight to the Cubs, Dodgers and Oakland, the fact that Garciaparra only played 170 games total in Chicago and Oakland voids that idea, and clearly his best years were already behind him during his stay in Los Angeles. Garciaparra was always one of those players who wore his heart on his sleeve and was very up front about his desire to return to Boston, and despite the circumstances, he proved that sometimes dreams do come true.