Former MLB pitcher Curt Schilling played 20 years in the big leagues and had an illustrious career that saw him win three World Series trophies along with six All-Star appearances. He made the transition from the diamond to the tube when he joined ESPN as a broadcaster in 2010. Last year though, he was removed from the Sunday Night Baseball and 2015 Little League World Series telecasts after he sent out a tweet that compared Muslims to Nazis. ESPN kept him on board in a limited role but now they have fired Schilling after another snafu on social media.
Earlier this week, Schilling shared a post on his Facebook account commenting on the transgender bathroom debate. The post was soon deleted and the 49-year-old claimed that he was not the one who made the post. The damage was already done, as screenshots were taken and ESPN has taken action.
Though he denied making the post, he doubled down on his stance in a comment.
The company released a statement pertaining to the matter:
“ESPN is an inclusive company. Curt Schilling has been advised that his conduct was unacceptable and his employment with ESPN has been terminated.”
Right before getting the ax by ESPN, Schilling wrote a lengthy piece on his personal blog defending his right to have an opinion.
“This is likely the easiest way to address all of you out there who are just dying to be offended so you can create some sort of faux cause to rally behind.”
“Let’s make one thing clear right up front. If you get offended by ANYTHING in this post, that’s your fault, all yours.”
Ironically enough, Schilling knew that his time at ESPN might be nearing its end. Back in September of 2015 he made a donation and when citing his employer on the form, he wrote: “ESPN (not sure how much longer).”
