David Wells and Curt Schilling were two of the best MLB pitchers of their era. A recent Twitter exchange shows they’re not on friendly terms.
David Wells and Curt Schilling were two of the best MLB pitchers of their era. The left-handed Wells earned 239 career wins, has two World Series rings and pitched a perfect game in 1998. The right-handed Curt Schilling has 216 wins and three World Series rings.
The two were even teammates late in their careers, in 2005 and 2006 with the Boston Red Sox.
Yet if the recent Twitter activity between the two is any indication, they don’t exactly like each other. When Wells was asked earlier this week to name a player that fellow players didn’t like, he provided a one-word answer:
Schilling https://t.co/ukeC0vge9M
— david wells (@BoomerWells33) April 23, 2020
Schilling didn’t take it too well:
At least tag me ya little bitch https://t.co/rlXsi3jrKx
— Curt Schilling (@gehrig38) April 23, 2020
Schilling’s somewhat bizarre response — simply that he should have been tagged — seems to indicate two things. First, Schilling didn’t dispute the claim, so he may know that he wasn’t well-liked around the league. Second, there must have been some previous animosity between the two for Schilling to respond like that.
However much Schilling was or wasn’t liked during his playing days, he’s been a center of controversy since he stopped pitching after the 2007 season. His outspoken pro-Republican views and at times abrasive personality have irked many fans and may be a reason why he’s had trouble getting into the Hall of Fame. Meanwhile, a browse through his Twitter feed shows that he’s frequently spatting with others.
Was Schilling like that during his playing career? Maybe, yet at least one former teammate, Lenny Dysktra, did come to Schilling’s defense:
Weak, @BoomerWells33. I and plenty of my #Phillies teammates loved having @gehrig38 as a teammate, especially when he was on the mound btw! We knew we’d get a great start. Could your teammates say the same of you? Your career ERA was almost 0.70 higher than Schill’s for a reason.
— Lenny Dykstra (@LennyDykstra) April 23, 2020
Meanwhile, actor Tom Arnold helped escalate things:
Hey @BoomerWells33 just got off the horn with @NoelAshman NYC He said last nite fake blood Sox @gehrig38 was peacocking you then little gummy bear @LennyDykstra piled on. As always I got your back no questions asked so do I or do I not need to start putting on my fighting pants?
— Tom Arnold (@TomArnold) April 25, 2020
Will this go any further? We’ll see.