Controversial Red Sox legend turns down World Series reunion invite

MassLive.com's Chris Cotillo and Sean McAdam noted that the 20th-anniversary reunion will also be a somber occasion. The Red Sox will honor longtime fan favorite Tim Wakefield and his wife, Stacy.

The one-time All-Star knuckleballer passed away at 57 years old in October 2023 after a battle with brain cancer. Stacy passed away from pancreatic cancer less than five months later in late February.

Less than one week before "Wake's" death, Schilling — who was teammates with Wakefield from 2004-07 — faced heavy backlash after sharing the couple's diagnoses on his podcast without any authorization or consent.

"This is not a message that Tim has asked anyone to share, and I don't even know if he wants it shared," Schilling said on the podcast before sharing the news.

Cotillo's and McAdam's report noted that Schilling's actions "angered the Wakefield family and other former teammates."

The former NLCS and World Series MVP's decision to report the private information was a monumental mistake, but his choice not to attend next month's home opener is the right call.

"Schilling did not want his appearance at the home opener to serve as a distraction from honoring Wakefield’s memory, a source with knowledge of the situation said," the MassLive report said. "As part of the announcement, the team made a point to note that 'all members' of the 2004 team were invited to the ceremony with participants being announced in advance of April 9."

Cotillo and McAdam added that there was "speculation that several teammates threatened not to attend the ceremony had Schilling chosen to attend," but one of their sources told them that that wasn't the case.

Schilling played 20 MLB seasons with five teams from 1988-2007, spending his most memorable days with the Philadelphia Phillies (1992-2000), Arizona Diamondbacks (2000-03) and Red Sox (2004-07). He earned three All-Star honors with the Phillies, two with the Diamondbacks and one with Boston while capturing the 2001 World Series MVP in Arizona and two crowns in Beantown.

The 57-year-old was a three-time Cy Young runner-up and considered one of the best postseason pitchers ever.

Per the MassLive report, Schilling has participated in "team festivities" at Fenway Park on multiple occasions since his retirement and was inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2012.

Despite his credentials for the National Baseball Hall of Fame, Schilling's post-playing days have been controversial, even before the Wakefield situation.

The former second-round draft pick has been outspoken with numerous extreme political stances, and he was fired as an ESPN analyst in 2016 after sharing a transphobic post on Facebook.

After years of falling short in the Baseball Hall of Fame voting, Schilling asked to be removed from the ballot ahead of his 10th and final attempt in 2022. That request was denied, and he failed to earn enough votes for enshrinement in 2023.