Honey, You Forgot Your Cape

(Boston Dirt Dogs Photo)

Apparently, the Superman cape was still in the closet. Curt Schilling, referred often as God around Red Sox Nation, struggled, to say the least, in his first spring training start. He left balls up in the zone, let rookies and double A prospects rip him apart. I know it’s spring training, but the man himself even admitted that his outing wasn’t anything to grin about.

That made me start to wonder- maybe Schilling won’t be ready for April 18. The way Curt looked yesterday, and judging from his disappointed tone of voice and sluggish performance, his confidence level for that specific date cannot be high. Would it surprise me if Schilling doesn’t pitch till May? Not at all. Coming off a huge surgery, this ankle could really hold him back and, unfortunately, use the arms of Clement, Wells, Arroyo and Wakefield more earlier in the season than originally planned.

Everyone also has to remember that this guy is nearing 40 years old. He’s staying primarily healthy in his years in big leagues, so it’s not like Curt has a history of nagging and career-threatening injuries. All I’m saying is that Superman may be spending more time eating sunflower seeds in the dugout before the All-Star break than throwing gems under the clear blue Fenway sky.

He was spent. He gave everything possible to capture a World Championship for his teammates, the city of Boston and their loyal fans across the world. He realized his pitching career was in jeopardy during every single pitch of Game 6 of the ALCS and Game 2 of the World Series, but he didn’t care. No matter how many innings Schilling pitches this year, nobody can take that ring away from him.