Red Sox Features On wbztv.com
Jun 25, 2008 10:59 am US/Eastern
Schilling Says He Still Has Chance To Pitch Again
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
Curt Schilling says he's in a lot of pain after having shoulder surgery Monday, but he's not walking away from baseball just yet.
In an interview on WEEI Radio Wednesday, Schilling said the surgery went well and that he still thinks he has a shot at pitching again - with the Red Sox or another team.
"If I want to play again, I have a chance to, that's the bottom line," he said.
But he can't pick up a baseball for four months after having his right biceps tendon and labrum repaired.
"I'm going to approach the first 6 to 8 to 10 weeks with all of the intentions of coming back to pitch again."
Schilling said he needs to be better than his injury-plagued 2007 season to make a comeback worthwhile.
"If I come out of rehab and I'm throwing 84 miles-an-hour, it's over."
Schilling, who did not pitch this season, decided last week to have the operation after the rehabilitation the Red Sox preferred didn't relieve the pain he felt when throwing from a mound at far below maximum effort.
He said he was glad what doctors found confirmed the pain he was having.
"I was comforted in knowing it wasn't a figment of my imagination."
Schilling said the post-surgery pain is about an 8 on a scale of 1 to 10.
"It's a lot more painful than I was expecting." He was hoping for about a 3.
Schilling also said he won't come back just to boost his chances for the Hall of Fame.
"It's not a relevant factor to me," he said.
His 11-2 postseason record is the best of any pitcher with 10 or more victories and he has a 2.23 postseason ERA in 19 starts.
In 20 years he is 216-146 with a 3.46 ERA in the regular season and ended last season with 3,116 strikeouts, 14th most in history. In four seasons with Boston after being traded from Arizona in November 2003, he is 53-29.
He also contributed to two World Series titles with the Red Sox after winning one with Arizona in 2001.
Schilling will be a free agent at the end of this season.
(© 2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
