The Red Sox say Tim Wakefield is in treatment and is asking for privacy after Schilling revealed the illness

BOSTON (AP) — The Boston Red Sox say announcer and former All-Star Tim Wakefield is receiving treatment for an unspecified illness and asked fans to respect his privacy after his illness was disclosed without his endorsement by former teammate Curt Schilling.

The team issued a statement Thursday after Schilling said on a podcast that Wakefield had brain cancer, leading to an outpouring of support for Wakefield — and criticism of Schilling. The Red Sox noted that they released the statement with the permission of Wakefield and his wife, Stacy.

“Unfortunately, this information was shared publicly without their permission,” the team said. “Their health is a deeply personal matter that they intended to keep private as they navigate treatment and work to address this disease. Tim and Stacy are grateful for the support and love they have always been shown and respectfully request privacy at this time.”

Wakefield, 57, retired in 2012 with a 200-192 record and 4.41 ERA in more than 3,000 major league innings. He was part of Boston’s 2004 and 2007 World Series championships and was inducted into the team’s Hall of Fame in 2016.

He has worked for NESN, the Red Sox broadcast network, since 2012 and has remained active in Boston charities, including the Red Sox Foundation.

Schilling, who was Wakefield’s teammate from 2004-07, retired in 2009. He worked as an ESPN analyst before being fired in 2016 for anti-transgender social media posts. Other posts expressed support for the lynching of journalists and the January 6 insurrection. His video game company, 38 Studios, went bankrupt and defaulted on a $75 million loan from the state of Rhode Island.

Schilling was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014 and later said he was in remission. He was inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2012, but was not inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2022, his final year of eligibility, garnering 58.6 percent of the vote—well short of the required 75 percent.

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