TORONTO � It�s the comparison everyone has been thinking about: Bogaerts and Garciaparra.

TORONTO � It�s the comparison everyone has been thinking about.

Seventeen years ago, the Red Sox handed over the shortstop position to a highly regarded prospect named Nomar Garciaparra, who promptly won the Rookie of the Year and, eventually, two batting titles. This season, Boston�s given the reins at short to Xander Bogaerts, arguably the organization�s most hyped prospect since Garciaparra, if not longer.

Garciaparra�s rookie season, though, sets a nearly impossible standard for anyone to live up to � rookie or no. Then 23, Garciaparra hit .306 with a .342 on-base percentage, 30 home runs and 98 RBIs. His 85 extra-base hits were second in the AL to only Ken Griffey, Jr.

Aside from the obvious talent he possessed, Garciaparra also carried himself with an impressive assurance throughout that rookie campaign. How exactly does a rookie shortstop have a season like that in Boston?

�You have to feel like you belong,� Garciaparra said recently over the phone. �If you don�t feel like you belong, they�re going to eat you alive out there�. It was just a matter of, what do I have to do to stay here and belong here for a long period of time?�

Garciaparra similarly tried his hardest to ignore the whirlwind around him.

�I didn�t really think about, �Oh, the expectations,�� he said. �It�s really about, what do I have to do to help our team win? I�ve got to learn so I can stay and continue to be there to help them win.�

Bogaerts said he�s gotten used to the media attention that comes with playing in Boston. As much as any other player, he was the focus of national storylines both last autumn and this spring. He gets it.

�It�s a bigger market,� he said. �It�s not the same if you make five errors somewhere else compared to making five errors in Boston. That comes with playing in Boston � high expectations for winning. It�s fun.�

Garciaparra credited his ridiculous rookie season in part to the context of his surroundings. He gained priceless experience at the end of the 1996 season when he played 24 games as a September call-up. That led him into the offseason with more answers than questions about where he needed to improve.

�It helped out so much just to get an idea,� he said. �You just can�t simulate the speed�. To experience it that way and then to be able to go into an offseason and know how I have to work � I�ve got a taste of it, I realize what it is and how I need to go out there and prepare myself.�

Bogaerts� introduction to the majors was obviously on a grander scale, as he didn�t start receiving regular playing time until the American League Championship Series. That makes his experience in that pre-rookie exposure even more valuable.

�You go through that pressure of every game being so important to win,� he said Sunday. �Being in a World Series, facing the best of the best and having some success, it�s something that if I�m going through a bit of a struggle, I can always reflect on that and get my confidence back high.�

Garciaparra also entered a veteran-laden clubhouse with high expectations. Mo Vaughn was the established star, a year removed from his MVP award. John Valentin and Tim Naehring, both of whom could see their playing time and roles change with Garciaparra�s emergence, were accepting of the young prospect.

�It was just invaluable how I had veteran guys who were willing to be there � the sounding board, to teach me, to talk to me,� Garciaparra said. �The guy whose position I took, John Valentin was huge. Just how much he taught me and how he treated me, especially with the way he probably didn�t even have to or what he was dealing with and how he felt � he was incredible.

�I just had all these veteran guys that had been through it. There were times, I just had to listen. It wasn�t always them talking directly at me. Just being able to be around them when they�re talking among themselves and hearing them talk about the game, I�m just gaining this knowledge. What a great place to be a fly on the wall and to be able to, as a sponge, soak it all in and help my development.�

Already, Bogaerts is enjoying a similar dynamic in the Red Sox clubhouse.

�Same thing, I would say,� he said. �I have a Gold Glove second baseman in [Dustin Pedroia] helping me a lot. There are good coaches around me, guys who have been around the game a lot � [Mike] Napoli, [Jonny] Gomes, [Daniel] Nava, Papi [Ortiz]. You know if you�re going through struggles, they�re right there to tell you everything is going to be OK. They�ve been through it, so they know what they�re talking about.�

Bogaerts� first month as Boston�s everyday shortstop has been a reminder of the proverbial growing pains that come with handing over a position to a 21-year-old. He has hinted at his game-changing offensive potential, with another long home run and a .392 on-base percentage through 24 games. He�s also shown flaws defensively that illustrate why some didn�t think he could stick at short. The Red Sox still do.

�The talent is there, the work ethic is there,� manager John Farrell said earlier this month. �We�ve got to ride the ebb and flow a little bit because of the inexperience, which is fully accepted on our part. �

�There�s a reason everybody is talking the way they are about him,� said Garciaparra. �It�s well-deserved. He has all the tools and all the makings to become a great player.�