At the team’s home opener at Fenway Park on April 9, members of the 2004 Boston Red Sox World Series championship squad—the team that broke the curse—will meet for a 20th anniversary celebration.
Curt Schilling, a former pitcher and six-time All-Star, was an important member of the historic team, but he has turned down an invitation to the event from the organization.
The Boston Globe’s Dan Shaughnessy broke the story on Wednesday.
Chris Cotillo and Sean McAdam of MassLive.com pointed out that the reunion’s 20th anniversary will be a solemn occasion. Tim Wakefield, a longstanding fan favorite, and his wife Stacy will be honored by the Red Sox.
After a fight with brain cancer, the former All-Star knuckleball player passed away in October 2023 at the age of 57. In late February, less than five months later, Stacy lost her life to pancreatic cancer.
Less than a week before “Wake’s” passing, Schilling, Wakefield’s teammate from 2004 to 2007, drew harsh criticism for disclosing the couple’s diagnosis on his podcast without permission.
“This is not a message that Tim has asked anyone to share, and I don’t even know if he wants it shared,” Schilling said on the podcast before sharing the news.
Cotillo’s and McAdam’s report noted that Schilling’s actions “angered the Wakefield family and other former teammates.”
The former NLCS and World Series MVP’s decision to report the private information was a monumental mistake, but his choice not to attend next month’s home opener is the right call.
“Schilling did not want his appearance at the home opener to serve as a distraction from honoring Wakefield’s memory, a source with knowledge of the situation said,” the MassLive report said. “As part of the announcement, the team made a point to note that ‘all members’ of the 2004 team were invited to the ceremony with participants being announced in advance of April 9.”
Cotillo and McAdam added that there was “speculation that several teammates threatened not to attend the ceremony had Schilling chosen to attend,” but one of their sources told them that that wasn’t the case.
Schilling played 20 MLB seasons with five teams from 1988-2007, spending his most memorable days with the Philadelphia Phillies (1992-2000), Arizona Diamondbacks (2000-03) and Red Sox (2004-07). He earned three All-Star honors with the Phillies, two with the Diamondbacks and one with Boston while capturing the 2001 World Series MVP in Arizona and two crowns in Beantown.
The 57-year-old was a three-time Cy Young runner-up and considered one of the best postseason pitchers ever.
The former second-round draft pick has been outspoken with numerous extreme political stances, and he was fired as an ESPN analyst in 2016 after sharing a transphobic post on Facebook.
After years of falling short in the Baseball Hall of Fame voting, Schilling asked to be removed from the ballot ahead of his 10th and final attempt in 2022. That request was denied, and he failed to earn enough votes for enshrinement in 2023.
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