FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Curt Schilling will stride to the mound tonight at City of Palms Park for his first spring training outing with the full knowledge that the weight of his comments, the weight around his midsection, and the weight of the stuff he'll bring in the wake of the Red Sox declining to extend his contract will subject him to a hefty amount of scrutiny.
No one should be stunned by the fact that Schilling is delighted with that.
In fact, even though he reported to camp with extra girth, Schilling said he's already shed the unwanted pounds and sees a 20-win season (something no one in the majors accomplished last season) in his future.
"Absolutely," he said. "Why can't I?"
The optimism stems, in part, from a new pitch -- a changeup -- that Schilling says he has been systematically refining and plans to unveil tonight against the Twins.
"I've been working on it for three years," he said. "That, along with 21 years of playing the game professionally, is going to work to my advantage.
"I threw it about 15-20 times last season. I threw some good ones, too. I'm not going to tell you who I've used it against, or when, because I'm not giving that away. But it's a pitch I plan to break out consistently."
Schilling practiced his new pitch on members of the Medfield High School baseball team over the winter. He said he threw every day during the offseason.
"I pitched more at home than I have here," he said.
The big righthander has been a daily news machine since announcing that he would like to play another season beyond 2007. Schilling anticipated that the Red Sox would extend him for another year at his present $13 million price tag, but after initially indicating they would likely do so, the Sox instead decided to gamble and perhaps allow the veteran to wade into free agency at season's end. General manager Theo Epstein cited Schilling's age (40) as one of the primary reasons the ball club decided to adopt a wait-and-see attitude.
Left unspoken was Schilling's disappointing physique when he showed up at Fort Myers. He was clearly overweight, and members of the front office took note.
"In 2004, I came into spring training at 242 pounds, and it felt like 210," he said. "This year I came in at 248 and it felt like 310."
Last season, Schilling was listed at 235 pounds in the press guide. He said his ideal weight this time of year is around 242 or 243.
"It's on me," he said. "No excuses -- and I haven't made any. I came to camp a couple of pounds heavier than I wanted to. A lot of things came to a head in the last 7-10 days [before camp] from a time-management situation. I was trying to get things set with my company before I came down here."
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