Cubs fans quickly adopt Garciaparra in victory over Phils

By Rick Gano ~ The Associated Press

CHICAGO -- Nomar Garciaparra stepped out in the bright sun for the first time at Wrigley Field and got a feel for a place that will be his new home for at least the next two months.

And when he was finished chatting Sunday with Greg Maddux -- who was going for his 300th win -- and manager Dusty Baker, and taking batting and fielding practice, he worked the crowd.

Garciaparra, traded Saturday from the Red Sox to the Cubs in a blockbuster four-way deal, headed to the left field tarp and signed autographs for outstretched fans for five minutes.

When he took the field for pregame stretching, he was greeted with a roaring ovation and waved to the cheering crowd.

When his name was introduced in the starting lineup and before every at-bat, the fans cheered him loudly.

And as he came to bat during a rally in the seventh, Wrigley Field was engulfed in a thunderous "NOMAR! NOMAR!" chant.

Garciaparra responded with an RBI single as the Cubs pulled out a 6-3 victory. After hitting into a double play in his first at-bat, he finished 1-for-4 and made two nice plays in the field, including a nifty catch of a popup in foul territory in the ninth.

"The ovation I got, things like that you'll never forget," Garciaparra said after the game. "That stuff stays with you in your heart."

Garciaparra said he was nervous well before the first pitch, even though he's a five-time All-Star who's played in many big games.

"It's like your first time all over again, opening day, just a new environment.

"This is my first time ever at Wrigley Field. I have never been here, never played here or ever just stopped by."

Garciaparra will have an adjustment period in a new league. And he won't hear the roaring Chicago crowds again until the Cubs return from a weeklong road trip.

"We're glad we got him on our team. Nomar has been one of the best shortstops in the game for a while now," said Maddux, who failed to get his 300th win Sunday and wound up with a no-decision.

"You change teams for the first time and it's tough. It takes a while to adjust."

Garciaparra said he'd been in a "whirlwind" since the trade was announced Saturday, adding he'd experienced varying emotions after departing the only team he'd ever played for.

His wife, soccer star Mia Hamm, spent Sunday with her U.S. Olympic teammates near Hartford, Conn., in an exhibition game against China. She scored a goal and set up two others in a 3-1 victory, the team's final tuneup before the Olympics. Garciaparra said Hamm took the trade news in stride.

"She's an amazing person," he said. "She said, 'Hey, just tell me where we're going to be when I get back from Greece."'

When the Red Sox tried during the offseason to get Alex Rodriguez from Texas to play shortstop, Garciaparra would have been shipped out. The deal didn't come together and, after he stayed with the Red Sox, Garciaparra's feelings were hurt.

But soon after the trade Saturday, he said he still wanted to stay in Boston.

"There was definitely some sadness last night. When you hear the news you get over that," Garciaparra said.

"I was talking upon leaving that the sadness would probably hit you later on and it definitely did because it's hard for anybody when you spend 10 years in one place and you set your home there."

Garciaparra, whose contract expires after this season, rejected a $60 million, four-year extension from the Red Sox last winter.

Would he consider signing long term with the Cubs?

"I haven't even thought about it, contract or anything," he said.

"It hasn't even entered my mind. Right now I'm dealing with this trade and getting acclimated here. I think that is first."

Garciaparra missed the first 57 games this season with a sore right Achilles' tendon and even though he says he might not be completely pain free, he's well enough to play.

Now he must learn a new league and adjust to the schedule of a team that still plays the majority of its home games during the day.

How long will that transition take?

"It might not take any games," Cubs manager Dusty Baker said.

"It depends on the person and how quickly he picks up things. This guy can hit and if you can hit, you can hit."

Garciaparra said when he went to breakfast Sunday morning, people were already welcoming him to town.

"He's coming to a beautiful team and a beautiful city. He's going to do great here, people are going to love him right away," Cubs star Sammy Sosa said.