Placing the focus where it belongs
An appreciation of Tim Wakefield
Much has been said and written the last 2 days about Tim Wakefield and Curt Schilling.
Having worked with both during my time as Vice President of Communications and, later, a radio broadcaster with the Red Sox, it’s fair to say I have a lot of thoughts. But I hadn’t planned to add my voice to the chorus.
There are plenty of people in Boston talking about this. There are plenty of people who’ve been in closer contact with both of them in recent years than I’ve been. I decided I’d leave the public part of the conversation to others, while keeping Wake, his wife Stacy and their children in my prayers.
But the more I read and the more I saw on social media, I realized that this conversation has been incredibly one-sided. And while I agree with virtually every word that has been spoken or written, I’m troubled that nearly all of the focus has been on the wrong person.
So if few others are going to do so, I’m going to spend a few minutes talking about Tim Wakefield.
In more than 3 decades in Baseball, I’ve been privileged to work with a handful of people who shine brightly not only between the lines but also off the field. As men. As husbands and fathers. As true role models. As people who make their communities better.
Even among that select group, Tim Wakefield stands out.
The man’s accomplishments on the field were significant. Among them: 200 major league victories in more than 3,000 innings over 19 seasons, the last 17 with the Red Sox.
Only 2 men have won more games for Boston. You may have heard of Cy Young and Roger Clemens.
Some hear the name Tim Wakefield and recall the 11th-inning walk-off home run Wake surrendered to Aaron Boone in his 2nd inning of relief in Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS. How many of those people remember the Red Sox wouldn’t have even been in Game 7 had Wake not started and won both Game 1 and Game 4 of that series, limiting the Yankees to 3 runs on 7 hits over 13 innings.
He was an important member of both the 2004 and 2007 Red Sox World Series championship clubs, the only man to make 30-plus starts for both of those teams.
He took one for the team and preserved other bullpen arms by working 3 1/3 innings of relief in a 19-8 blowout at the hands of the Yankees as the Red Sox went down 3 games to none in the 2004 ALCS. Then he came back 2 games later and worked 3 scoreless innings to earn the win in Game 5. He pitched innings 12-14, all essentially sudden death innings for the Red Sox in what was ultimately a 14-inning victory that helped the Sox on their way to the greatest post-season comeback in Major League history.
There’s no greater praise one baseball player can offer of another than to call him “a great teammate.” Ask the men who shared a clubhouse with Tim Wakefield. Many will tell you he was a once-in-a-career teammate. He was unselfish, time after time putting the team’s best interest ahead of what may have been best or easiest or most convenient for him.
Start? Relieve? Pitch on short rest? Skip a turn in the rotation? Dig deep and push through one more inning?
No problem, if it’s what the club needs.
Hampered by a shoulder issue during the 2007 postseason, Wakefield’s availability to start a World Series game and recover to potentially pitch again in the series was in question. Prior to the start of the series, he went to General Manager Theo Epstein and manager Terry Francona and suggested he be left off the roster for the good of the club.
That led to this moment, teammate Mike Timlin saluting Wakefield amid the celebration after the Red Sox completed their World Series sweep of the Rockies with a Game 4 win at Coors Field.
The knuckleballer didn’t garner the attention of other prominent arms with whom he shared a rotation over the years—aces like Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez, Josh Beckett and, yes, Curt Schilling. But Wake didn’t need the spotlight. He just wanted to win. And he reliably took the ball every 5 days for almost 2 decades, nearly always giving the Red Sox a chance to do just that. To win.
I could go on with other accomplishments that led to Wake earning election to the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2016, but that’s merely baseball.
There’s more to Tim Wakefield that needs to be shared.
Off the field, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better man in the sport. Trust me. I’ve met a lot of them over more than 3 decades in the game.
A loving husband and father, few have been more generous with their time and money to help others, specifically children.
The impact Wake has made—and continues to make to this day with his wife Stacy—goes far beyond his work on the mound.
And as was the case on the field, Wake has always been content to do his important off-field work away from the spotlight. While he has always been generous with his time and gracious with the media, Wake has never sought television cameras and microphones. He has never sought headlines.
He has sought children and families he can help.
Just ask Wakefield’s Warriors. Just ask the young Jimmy Fund patients at the renowned Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, a short walk down Brookline Ave. from Fenway Park. Just ask the boys and girls at Franciscan Children’s Hospital in Boston or at the Space Coast Early Intervention Center in his hometown of Melbourne, FL.
Although Wake has never looked for accolades, his work has been too impactful to not be recognized. In 2010, he received Major League Baseball’s prestigious Roberto Clemente Award, the highest honor a big leaguer can earn for a lifetime of contributions on and—as importantly—off the field. The year before, the Baseball Assistance Team honored Wake with its Bart Giamatti Award for community service.
Although he threw his last pitch 12 years ago, Wake still serves as the Honorary Chairman of the Red Sox Foundation, as he continues his important off-field work to this day across New England and in Florida.
Since debuting in the major leagues more than 30 years ago, Tim Wakefield has been beloved and respected by fans and teammates alike, a winner and a quiet hero.
Unlike some, he has never sought attention.
Being thrust into the news as Wake and his family have been in recent days is cruel and, simply, wrong. But it’s time to stop talking about the guy with the microphone and to shift the focus to where it belongs.
Let’s celebrate the impactful work of Tim and Stacy Wakefield, all they’ve done and will do. And let’s keep them and their family in our prayers, to lift them as they’ve lifted so many others with their unfailing goodness and their immeasurable humanity.
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Just heard the news. Sincere condolences.
Superb.