Schilling checks in with some heaters
He wasn't "Curt on the car phone" yesterday. He was "Curt in the hotel room," taking part in an online chat with the Boston Dirt Dogs and calling WEEI to chat on "The Big Show" before last night's Game 4.
He, of course, is Sox pitcher Curt Schilling, and, as usual, he had plenty to say.
But it was his opening statement, dealing with the makeup of this year's team, that stunned the audience and seemingly host Glenn Ordway.
"The biggest move, when all was said and done, was the non-move. I think if we get A-Rod [Alex Rodriguez], we don't get here [to the World Series]. I don't question that for a second," said Schilling.
"He's a Hall of Famer, sure. But after getting to know people who a) play with him and b) have played with him, I don't think it would have worked here. I think this clubhouse would have been a much different place, and I don't think it would have been better, given the personalities involved."
That comes under the heading of throwing a good-sized log in the fire for the Hot Stove League.
Schilling even dealt with a clause in his contract -- one he negotiated -- that calls for a $2 million raise and an option year to automatically kick in if the Sox win the World Series. "It was one of the few offers we exchanged [with the Sox in negotiations]," he said. "I guess now it's not the chucklefest it was back when I brought it up." On the Dirt Dog site on Boston.com, Schilling gave the full story of what he went through medically and emotionally to pitch in Sunday's Game 2 of the Series.
He also:
Responded to charges by Baltimore Sun columnist Laura Vecsey that it wasn't blood on his sock. "It was," he said. He also explained the significance of "K ALS" [strike out amyotrophic lateral sclerosis] written on his right shoe. He also said, "No, MLB didn't come down on me for the message."
Asked if he wished to reply to the spirit of Vecsey's piece, he said, "Other than she's a bad person? No."
Talked about performance clauses in contracts (a topic during his WEEI chat, too)
Explained his pregame prayers: "I simply asked Him to provide me with the strength to get to the mound and compete, and to give me the strength to glorify Him when I was done."
Cover boys
Sports Illustrated has Mark Bellhorn and the Red Sox on the cover this week and the magazine also plans to put out a special Red Sox World Series victory issue, one that could be its biggest since the commemorative edition following the death of NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt in 2001. "The special we put out following the Patriots' first Super Bowl victory in 2002 did very well, something like 300,000 sold," said SI spokesman Rick McCabe. "But our marketing people think a Sox edition would sell close to a million copies."
SI's production plans call for the issue to be on newsstands (at about $5.95) in three days.
Ratings boom
Tuesday night's Game 3 did a 15.7 national rating and 24 share, according to
Boston's rating was the highest for a Sox game since Game 7 of the ALCS against the Yankees, which did a 56.6 rating/77 share. It also fell between the Patriots' two Super Bowl victories -- a 56.1 (78) in 2002 and a 52.2 (78) in 2004.
Same time frame
The commercial breaks in World Series games may seem longer than normal, but they're not. "They've been 2 minutes 25 seconds for years," said Fox spokesman Dan Bell . . . One thing you miss in Fox's telecasts is the "K-Zone," the virtual strike zone exclusive to ESPN's telecasts . . . Fox's in-game visits with the rival managers have been revealing. The spots, taped between innings, paid off Tuesday night when Cardinals manager Tony La Russa was on after pitcher Jeff Suppan was doubled up as he scrambled back to third base. "Do I have to go on right now," said La Russa. "Larry [Walker] had a great at-bat that should have gotten a run in and a runner over to third. Now I hope Suppan doesn't dwell on it and get so upset he loses his pitching focus." And that's what happened as the Sox got a run in the fourth and two more in the fifth, when Suppan left the game. Fox analyst Tim McCarver on the play: "That's a gimme marker the Sox were giving the Cardinals." Later he revisited it, saying, "The Cardinals were deflated, and Pedro [Martinez] could smell the victory. He's like a wolverine. Watch his body language. He can smell a victory like no other pitcher in baseball." . . . Sox manager Terry Francona, a half-inning later, said, "Pedro's command isn't where he wants it as far as settling in yet." Then Martinez went out and settled in with four straight 1-2-3 innings . . . Fox used the standard over-the-pitcher's shoulder view from center field, relegating the dead-center view to pitching replays . . . Note to NESN: Did you notice Mike Timlin recording the postgame celebration on his video camera? It might make a good winter program. 