Former MLB pitcher Curt Schilling has never shied away from controversy. In April 2016, he hit the headlines for going on an anti-transgender rant on Facebook. He shared a contentious meme on his Facebook page, along with a distasteful comment.
Although the controversial post was deleted by Schilling, Outsports, a sports news website concerned with LGBTQ issues and personalities, captured screenshots and posted them on their blog.
Schilling also went on to leave an equally controversial comment regarding transgender bathroom laws below his Facebook post. He wrote:
"A man is a man no matter what they call themselves. I don’t care what they are, who they sleep with, men’s room was designed for the p****, women’s not so much. Now you need laws telling us differently? Pathetic.”
Since ESPN has largely been favorable towards the LGBTQ community, Schilling was expelled from his role.
"Curt, fired from ESPN, joins Breitbart." - @The Daily Beast
As per ESPN's termination letter, Schilling was fired for his "unacceptable misconduct."
"ESPN is an inclusive company. Curt Schilling has been advised that his conduct was unacceptable and his employment with ESPN has been terminated," their statement read.
Curt Schilling believes he was fired by ESPN “for being a conservative"
In September 2019, former Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling was involved in a fiery exchange with CNN host Michael Smerconish.
When Smerconish asked Schilling about his termination from ESPN following his anti-transgender rant in 2016, he said:
“I wasn’t fired for speaking my mind, I was fired for being a conservative."
Smerconish also termed Schilling's anti-transgender meme a "cheap shot."
To which Schilling responded:
"I get it, you guys work on getting ratings. You need to be bombastic, and you need to make assumptions for the viewers because you guys operate on the notion that we’re too stupid to speak for ourselves.”
Schilling currently serves as a commentator for conservative media outlet BlazeTV.