“To say I™ve been blessed would be like calling Refrigerator Perry ‘a bit overweight’,” gushes P Curt Schilling, using his WEEI.com hosted 38 Pitches to announce his formal retirement after 23 years in the game. While thanking wife Shonda, his four children and (natch) Jesus Christ, Schilling failed to acknowledge Randy Johnson, Manny Ramirez, Mitch Williams, John McCain or Barry Bonds on this fateful day.
Four World Series, three World Championships. That there are men with plaques in Cooperstown who never experienced one ” and I was able to be on three teams over seven years that won it all ” is another œbeyond my wildest dreams set of memories I™ll take with me.
The game always gave me far more than I ever gave it. All of those things, every single one of those memories is enveloped with fan sights and sounds for me. Without the fans, they would still be great memories, but none would be enduring and unforgettable because they infused the energy, rage, passion and œfeel of all of those times. The game was here long before I was, and will be here long after I™m gone. The only thing I hope I did was never put in question my love for the game, or my passion to be counted on when it mattered most. I did everything I could to win every time I was handed the ball.
I am and always will be more grateful than any of you could ever possibly know.