Breaking up is hard to do: though once it seemed Nomar Garciaparra and the Red Sox would live happily ever after, their relationship has eroded to the point that staying together seems unlikely.(Baseball)

The kids of New England are not handling this well at all. Love is not supposed to have an expiration date, but a trail of clues too numerous and obvious to ignore make it clear the once rock-solid marriage between Nomar Garciaparra and the Red Sox has soured. It has been a decade since the wiry shortstop was drafted by the Red Sox and more than six years since they entered into a long-term contract, one which seemingly would be renewed into eternity without any of the usual hassles and catfights that accompany the departures of too many Red Sox superstars.

Revered by the Red Sox fan base, Garciaparra was--and still is--a New England sports icon. He might not ...