MLB odds: Curt Schilling's career likely over

Boston Red Sox right-hander Curt Schilling announced in a radio interview on Friday morning that he will have shoulder surgery on Monday and will miss the 2008 season - one in which he has yet to pitch.

And being that Schilling is 41 years old, it stands to reason his possible Hall of Fame career is also over.

"My season is over and there is a pretty decent chance I have thrown my last pitch forever," he said. "If you use a scale of 1-10 and 10 is pitching in the big leagues, I'm at about 3 right now. I'm going in to make it not hurt anymore."

Schilling said that he is leaving open the possibility of coming back late next season if his shoulder responds but that it would be unlikely.

"I don't want it to end this way but if it has to end this way, I'm OK with that," he said.

He first experienced pain in his right shoulder and biceps area over the winter. The injury was revealed just before spring training and Schilling had spent months trying to rehab it. The Red Sox weren't expecting anything from Schilling until well after the All-Star Break - if at all.Schilling actually threw his first side session on June 3 and was able to throw from the bullpen three more times after that. But a disappointing session on June 13 was when Schilling started to get an idea that he had experienced a setback. Apparently because of the shoulder tendon problem, Schilling could throw off flat ground, but not from the mound. His arm had been getting stronger other than the tendon.

If the surgery is limited to fixing the tendon, the usual recovery time is about six months, but Schilling says he has labrum damage and maybe damage to his rotator cuff.

Schilling ended last season, his 20th, with 3,116 strikeouts, 14th most in baseball history, and was 9-8 with a 3.47 ERA in 24 starts. If Schilling never pitches again, his last start will wind up being Game 2 of the 2007 World Series, when he led the Red Sox to a 2-1 victory over the Rockies. He has been dominant in the postseason with an 11-2 record, the best of any pitcher with at least 10 decisions. And there's the famous 2004 bloody sock game that will live in Boston infamy.

He has a career record of 216-146 with a 3.46 ERA, and was co-MVP of the 2001 World Series with Randy Johnson for Arizona.

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