Curt Schilling is no stranger to criticism.
But while most of the controversy surrounding Schilling stems from his extreme political beliefs, the former MLB pitcher is now getting pushback for revealing serious medical information about a former teammate.
During the latest episode of Outkick’s The Curt Schilling Baseball Show, Schilling revealed that former Boston Red Sox pitcher and current NESN analyst Tim Wakefield is battling a serious form of brain cancer. There is no indication that Schilling had permission to reveal Wakefield’s diagnosis, which had not been previously known publicly.
“This is not a message that Tim has shared and I don’t even know if he wants it shared. But as a Christian and a man of faith, I have seen prayer work and so I’m going to talk about it,” Schilling said. “Recently, Tim was diagnosed with a very serious, very aggressive form of brain cancer.”
Schilling went on to say that he and Wakefield hadn’t remained particularly close since the end of their playing careers, but did stay in touch. He also revealed that Wakefield had underwent surgery and that the situation is “incredibly serious.”
As news of Wakefield’s diagnosis spread, many took to social media to criticize Schilling for revealing news that he seemingly wasn’t given permission to share.
Others roundly criticized Schilling for sharing news of Wakefield’s medical diagnosis without his consent.
https://twitter.com/NASPpodcast/status/1707397550892785815
Finally, the Red Sox themselves came out with a statement. While it didn’t mention Schilling by name, it did say that the news about Wakefield’s health was shared without his permission and they intended to keep his treatment private.
https://twitter.com/GlobeChadFinn/status/1707432533632209226
Earlier this week, Schilling received criticism for reposting modern Nazi propaganda regarding “The Jewish Question” on social media. In 2015, the Red Sox Hall of Fame member revealed a collection of Nazi memorabilia he owns, which he defended as “a collection of World War II stuff.”
[OutKick]
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.