It's not a total loss

The one and only, Curt Schilling.

That's right, Big Schill is back. He pitched six-plus innings in a 4-2 loss to the Orange County/Los Angeles/California Angels last night, his first major league appearance since June 18. He was pulled from the game with no outs in the top of the seventh after surrendering a solo homer to the immortal Maicer Izturis and a double to Jeff (0 for 18) Mathis.

"It's disappointing," Schilling said. "I could have very easily shut those guys out if I have made some pitches. I hung a couple of splitters."

Schilling threw a lot of off-speed stuff, blanking the Angels on two hits with three strikeouts in the first three innings. There was trouble in the fourth. Vlad Guerrero led with a hard hopper up the middle -- a ball Schilling attempted to barehard while leaping awkwardly to his right. The ball skipped off Schillling's index finger and into center field. Schilling threw some warmup tosses before determining it was OK to continue.

Schilling hurt himself in a different way when he faced Garret Anderson. The Angels DH hit a hard grounder to Kevin Youkilis and it would have been a 3-6-1 double play had Schilling gotten over to cover in time. Predictably, the next batter (Gary Matthews Jr.) doubled to left and Casey Kotchman plated Anderson and Matthews with a single to center to make it a 2-2 ballgame.

"I didn't cover first, and that's a bad assumption," said Schilling. "I thought [Youkilis] was going to go back to cover the bag. Not turning that double play changed everything about that inning. It let them turn it into a big inning."

Schilling blanked the Halos in the fifth and sixth. Mr. 38 Pitches threw only 75 pitches in the first six innings, giving up seven hits, but striking out five with no walks. Given the long layoff and the caliber of the opposition, it was pretty impressive and bodes well for Schilling and the Sox in these next three months.

Then came the fateful seventh and the hanging splitters.

Shoulder tendinitis put Schilling on the shelf just a little over a week after his one-hitter against the A's in early June. In his two starts after Oakland, it was obvious that he had no zip on his fastball. He was Wasdinesque. Rest and rehab were required.