On Thursday, the Boston Red Sox announced that former knuckleballer Tim Wakefield has been diagnosed with brain cancer and that his wife Stacy is battling pancreatic cancer. Neither of them gave their consent for the news to be made public.
The Red Sox issued the statement after former teammate Curt Schilling discussed Wakefield’s sickness on his podcast on Wednesday night.
Red Sox say Tim Wakefield is in treatment, asks for privacy after illness outed by Curt Schilling https://t.co/d7rd5HKztQ pic.twitter.com/VuUA06T5P2
— South Florida Sun Sentinel (@SunSentinel) September 29, 2023
“We are aware of the statements and inquiries about the health of Tim and Stacy Wakefield. Unfortunately, this information has been shared publicly without their permission,” the statement reads. “Their health is a deeply personal matter they intended to keep private as they navigate treatment and work to tackle this disease. Tim and Stacy are appreciative of the support and love that has always been extended to them and respectfully ask for privacy at this time.”
In his podcast, Schilling admitted he had not gotten Wakefield’s blessing before telling the media.
“This is not a message that Tim has asked anyone to share, and I don’t even know if he wants it shared,” he said, “but as a Christian, and as a man of faith, I have seen prayer work, so I am going to talk about it.”
“Tim’s wife Stacy, who is one of the nicest women you’ll ever meet, is very sick with pancreatic cancer,” he continued. “Recently, Tim was diagnosed with a very serious, a very aggressive form of brain cancer.”
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The Red Sox won the World Series in 2004 and 2007 with Schilling and Wakefield on the team. Both Schilling and Wakefield retired after 17 years with the Red Sox; Schilling in 2009 and Wakefield in 2011. Both are now in the Red Sox Hall of Fame.
Wakefield is still very much involved in the Boston community; he has been a Red Sox analyst for NESN since 2012 and has participated in numerous Red Sox Foundation charity events.
Some of Schilling’s comments, such as his dismissal from ESPN as a game and studio analyst in 2016 over a message the network deemed disrespectful regarding transgender bathroom laws, have tarnished his retirement.
Catherine Varitek, wife of former teammate Jason Varitek, posted “(Explicit) you Curt Schilling, that wasn’t your place!” on X, the former Twitter platform, in response to his disclosure about the Wakefields.
“Fuck you Curt Schilling, that wasn’t your place!”#CurtSchilling #TimWakefield #BostonRedSox https://t.co/lrvRwgTmPT
— Whiskey Riff (@WhiskeyRiff) September 28, 2023
Schilling has stated that he and Wakefield keep in “on and off” contact with one another. He said he spoke with Doug Mirabelli, who was Wakefield’s catcher, on Tuesday but could not specify when the two last spoke.
Wakefield has undergone surgery, Schilling said, and he hopes his former teammate will get an outpouring of support after hearing of the cancer diagnosis.
After 30 years of chewing tobacco, Schilling revealed in August 2014 that he was suffering from mouth cancer. He was diagnosed in February, but he told a local sports talk program that he kept it quiet for months because “I didn’t want people to feel sorry for me” and because he didn’t want to add his voice to the discussion about chewing tobacco.
“I remember when I was sick the things that happened to me, and the people who reached out to me, it was always a good thing, always made my heart feel good to know someone that I hadn’t spoken to was still thinking of me,” Schilling said on his podcast Wednesday. “I wanted to say and do this for that reason. I wanted Tim and Stacy to know that we’re obviously praying for them, we’re thinking of them.”
The Herald left many messages for Schilling on Thursday and Friday, but he did not return any of them.
