Dan Duquette, who eight years ago achieved his childhood dream of running the Boston Red Sox, lost his last chance to bring the franchise a world championship as the team's new owners fired him as general manager yesterday.

In the first of several expected sweeping changes that club sources say soon could include the ouster of manager Joe Kerrigan, the club's new owners removed Duquette and temporarily replaced him with one of his assistants, Mike Port, as they launched a search for the 10th general manager in the franchise's 101-year history.

The decision was made by the new bosses - John Henry, Larry Lucchino, and Tom Werner - over breakfast yesterday, less than 18 hours after they legally assumed control of the team. They delivered the news to Duquette at his condominium across from Sanibel Island.

''Dan has been successful, but it's a new day,'' Henry said. ''This is something we felt made the most sense for the organization.''

Duquette, who has said he learned to read by poring over newspaper box scores and began training as a teenager for the GM job, betrayed his reputation as a passionless administrator as he fought back tears over his dismissal. He had said publicly for days that he believed the new owners would retain him.

''I'm most disappointed that I will not have the opportunity to realize the goal Red Sox fans and I have shared for too long: a World Series championship,'' he said. ''No one loves the Red Sox more than I do. No one is more dedicated to the success of this organization.''

The new owners, who will pay Duquette the balance of his $3 million contract through Jan. 26, 2004, whether or not he gets another job, declined to predict when they might hire a full-time replacement. Though Port will be a candidate for the post, the top candidates are current general managers such as Brian Sabean of the San Francisco Giants and Billy Bean of the Oakland A's, who may be tied up until after the season.

''The decision is a long-term one and is very important to the success of the franchise for years to come,'' said Lucchino, the team president. ''So we aren't going to put a timetable on it.''

Port, a former general manager of the Anaheim Angels, said he was honored to accept ''the awesome responsibility'' of becoming an architect of the Sox. He was offered the job at City of Palms Park at 12:30 p.m., about two hours after the new owners dumped Duquette. But even as Port began to adapt to his new role, he acknowledged the fragility of his tenure.

''It occurs to me that a GM is always interim,'' said Port, who is highly regarded in baseball for his acumen and decency.

Lucchino said there were times in recent days when the new owners debated whether to retain Duquette as general manager. He said they also weighed offering him another job in the organization. But the morning after they sipped champagne to celebrate their acquisition, the new bosses decided to sever all ties between Duquette and the franchise.

''We made the decision that it was time for a fresh start,'' Lucchino said. ''We were unanimous that was the decision to make and were equally unanimous that we owe a debt of gratitude to Dan Duquette for the years he has served with the Red Sox.''

In their meeting at Duquette's condo, the deposed GM apparently received the news he had dreaded with grace. ''He was very professional about it, very mature about it,'' Lucchino said. ''We had a civil discussion and we were relieved by the professional way Dan approached it.''

The new owners said they will begin to evaluate the rest of the team's baseball operation this morning, with Kerrigan one of the first to fall under scrutiny. Duquette, in a move that contributed to his demise, replaced Jimy Williams with Kerrigan last August, sending the Sox into a 12-26 tailspin after they had contended most of the season for the American League East title.

Lucchino has declined repeated opportunities to give Kerrigan a vote of confidence. Port, in one of his first acts as interim GM, also deferred assessing Kerrigan's status. As a consequence, an air of suspense pervaded the Sox clubhouse as the names of the leading candidates to replace the manager hung in the air: Grady Little, Ken Macha, Felipe Alou, Jim Fregosi, and Buck Showalter.

''I think it has really come to a head now,'' catcher Jason Varitek said about the questions surrounding Kerrigan's future. ''Now that they've officially taken over and there hasn't been a definitive statement either way, that's going to bring a lot of uncertainty.''

Kerrigan insisted he has given no thought to his job security, though his twice-daily news conferences are dominated by the subject.

''I'm the manager of the Boston Red Sox,'' he said, ''and until somebody tells me further, that's what my focus is on.''

As the new owners prepared to conduct their evaluation, Kerrigan was fielding questions from reporters about players such as Manny Ramirez and Pedro Martinez, who reportedly are not pleased to be playing for him - a climate perhaps less conducive than the new bosses are seeking.

''Let's talk about baseball,'' Kerrigan finally said with a trace of aggravation. ''All the other stuff is bull.''

Amid the possibility of Kerrigan's ouster, right fielder Trot Nixon urged the new owners not to delay too long if they plan to change managers. But he put in a plug for Kerrigan.

''It wouldn't be good to do it during the season,'' Nixon said. ''I just honestly do not know what's going to happen, but I believe Joe deserves the opportunity. I respect him as a coach and a person.''

The careers of Duquette and Kerrigan have been intertwined. Duquette, a native of Dalton, Mass., who graduated from Amherst College, was GM of the Montreal Expos in 1992 when he gave Kerrigan his first job as a major league coach.

Two years later, Duquette was considered one of the best of the brightest of the game's young executives when then-CEO John Harrington made him the Sox GM. With his dream job, Duquette showed some flashes of brilliance as he built Sox teams that went to the playoffs in 1995 and in consecutive seasons (1998 and '99) for the first time in 83 years.

He was responsible for bringing the likes of Ramirez, Martinez, Varitek, and Nomar Garciaparra to Boston. And he played a key role in helping the team set franchise attendance records the last two years.

But Duquette also let superstars Roger Clemens and Mo Vaughn get away. He developed a reputation as cold and aloof, both in Boston and around the league. And he made the disastrous decision to acquire Carl Everett, a central figure in last season's miserable finish, one of the most embarrassing stretches in club history.

But Sox players generally preferred to focus on Duquette's contributions.

''I'm sorry for Dan,'' Martinez said. ''He lost his job and I wish him the best. I hope he gets another job. I know he will. He has done a good job.''

Before Duquette stunned the baseball world by trading minor league prospects to Montreal for Martinez after the 1997 season, he picked him up for the Expos from the Dodgers.

''My relationship with him is not going to change,'' Martinez said. ''Regardless of where he goes, I'll always have respect for him.''

Duquette brought Varitek and Derek Lowe to Boston from Seattle in 1997 in exchange for Heathcliff Slocumb, one of the best trades of his tenure.

''If I wasn't traded over here, I don't know where I'd be right now,'' Varitek said. ''I wish Dan well. You hate to see that for anybody, to lose their job. I wish him the best of luck.''

But Duquette was hardly gone before nearly everyone else in the organization wondered who would go next. Varitek urged them to remain calm.

''Let's take a deep breath and let things cool down,'' he said. ''Let's see what happens first before we panic.''

By Bob Hohler from The Boston Globe, March 1, 2002.

This story ran on page A1 of the Boston Globe on 3/1/2002.

Copyright 2002 Globe Newspaper Company.