Schilling pitches a run for Congress
2004 Sox hero gets slap on the back from Trump
Former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling — of bloodysock fame and Rhode Island video gaming company ignominy — is getting a nudge to run for Congress from President Trump.
Trump tweeted his support Tuesday morning, saying, “Curt Schilling, a great pitcher and patriot, is considering a run for Congress in Arizona. Terrific!”
Schilling, an outspoken conservative and avid Trump fan, had said on a radio show over the weekend that he’s “absolutely considering” a run for one of the five Arizona congressional districts currently held by Democrats.
There’s no requirement that people in Congress live in the districts they represent. “The state is not the state I grew up in,” Schilling, who was raised there, told The Arizona Republic in an email. “Making Arizona citizens of EVERY Race, religion and sexual orientation 2nd class citizens to illegal immigrants is about as antiAmerican as it gets. When you have homeless veterans, children, and you’re spending tax dollars on people smuggling drugs and children across our border someone in charge needs their ass kicked.”
When the Herald reached Schilling on Tuesday by text message, he declined to add anything further.
Schilling cemented himself in Red Sox lore when he gutted out a start in Game 6 of the 2004 American League Championship Series, pitching with a torn tendon sheath in his ankle. His ankle visibly bleeding from a medical procedure, the 6-foot-5 pitcher shut down the Yankees, helping the Sox ultimately move onto and then win the World Series, the team’s first in 86 years. He pitched for the Sox from 2004 until 2007, including another World Series title in his final year in the majors.
Schilling also pitched for the Arizona Diamondbacks, helping them win a World Series in 2001 while earning co-Most Valuable Player honors along with fellow ace Randy Johnson. Schilling, one of the top pitchers of his day, was an All-Star six times over his 20-year career, during which he compiled a 216-146 record and struck out 3,116 batters.
He also was very visible raising money for charity causes, including the fights against skin cancer and ALS.
But his post-baseball career was marked by controversy. His video game company, 38 Studios, moved to Rhode Island in 2010 in exchange for a $75 million loan guarantee — and then tanked. Following the bankruptcy, the company had to settle lawsuits amounting to millions of dollars with the Ocean State. In 2016, he lost his ESPN commentary gig over comments about transgender people.