Work in clutch makes Schilling Hall-worthy
What: After undergoing major shoulder surgery, it’s possible that at 41 years old, Boston’s Curt Schilling has thrown his last pitch. It has brought into focus his Hall of Fame candidacy, which will be controversial for both his numbers and e.e. cummings stream-of-consciousness opinions on everything.
When: Schilling will be eligible for the Hall five seasons after he retires. Age and health are working against a return, leaving strongly debatable, if not borderline, statistics. Those against Schilling cite one number: 216. That’s his victory total. We have all been raised to believe that pitchers without 300 victories need a tour guide and ticket to see Cooperstown. Such thinking is flawed. There are only 23 pitchers who have reached 300 wins. It is a benchmark, but like many statistics, not always the true measure of a player’s impact.
Renck’s take: In the interest of full disclosure, I have never been a Schilling fan. Watching him throw Arizona manager Bob Brenly under the bus during the 2001 World Series was disgusting. Ask fellow players about him, and they roll their eyes. As now-infamous Houston GM Ed Wade once said of Schilling, “He’s a horse on the fifth day and a horse’s (bleep) the other four.” That said, the guy is clutch. He never won a Cy Young Award because former Diamondbacks teammate Randy Johnson enjoyed one of the greatest four-year runs ever during their time together. Schilling, though, owns a .600 career winning percentage. And — this can’t be overstated — he reigns as the best big-game performer of his generation. Beyond his bloody-sock drama, he’s 10-2 in the playoffs with a 2.23 ERA. There are those who say postseason stats shouldn’t matter because it’s unfair to players on bad teams. If that was the case, how many Yankees’ candidacies would require further review? A legitimate gripe against Schilling is that he’s too often hurt. But the reality is this: If I had one game to win, he would be my starting pitcher. I just might pass on interviewing him afterward.
