The Boston Red Sox had several members of their 2004 curse-breaking championship team on hand at Fenway Park Wednesday night to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before Game 2 of the World Series, and Curt Schilling was not among them. The team is claiming that was not by design, but Schilling clearly does not buy it.
In a lengthy Facebook post early Thursday morning, Schilling seemingly unloaded on the Red Sox ownership group without mentioning any names.
“The men who sit in that ivory tower and pass their judgment from on high know EXACTLY what I did and it shames them as men knowing they’ll never in their lives be able to do anything remotely close to that,” Schilling wrote. “I can wake up tomorrow and peek at the 3 (World Series) Trophies, or put on the 3 (World Series) Rings and know what was and is. I don’t need a ceremony to know what we did that year.”
Many have tried to distance themselves from Schilling’s controversial political views over the years, and members of the Red Sox organization are among them. A team spokesperson told WEEI.com that Wednesday’s first pitch ceremony was informal and “grew organically” from members of the 2004 team who happened to be attending the game, but that seems hard to believe.
“I just didn’t get an invitation from a few weak ‘men’ who’ve spent their entire lives paying and watching other men achieve,” Schilling added.
Schilling has been accused of being racist and a bigot, which is something he addressed in his Facebook post. He noted that no teammates, coaches, team staff members, fans or anyone else has “ever provided even an ounce of evidence to prove or convince people I am a racist,” though some would point to his Twitter activity.
Even if he disagrees with the reasons why, Schilling’s presence at Fenway Park on Wednesday would have had the potential to create a distraction before a World Series game. That was the last thing the Red Sox wanted.
