Boston, MA

Former Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling maintains that the incident where a team's medical staff raised the possibility using performance-enhancing drugs to treat his injured shoulder happened, despite reports saying that his claim was "completely baseless".

"It happened. I informed the club, and there were other players that heard the conversation, who I spoke with after," Schilling told ESPN.com in an email.

"The club immediately informed MLB, and they launched an investigation in which all parties were interviewed. If someone's saying it didn't happen, I am not sure why, since the two people in the discussion are gone," he added.

According to two baseball sources, investigations conducted by both the Boston Red Sox and Major League Baseball concluded that Schilling's claim was baseless.

In previous interviews, Schilling has exonerated a host of people that did not make the suggestion, including members of the front office and the medical staff, but has declined to identify the accused staffer.

However, multiple sources said Schilling accused Mike Reinold, who had just been named the team's rehabilitation coordinator in 2008 and with whom the team cut ties after the 2012 season.

Schilling then reported the alleged conversation to Terry Francona and Theo Epstein, the team's manager and general manager at the time, respectively.

According to MLB sources, Epstein immediately contacted MLB offices in New York, as is required under the terms of baseball's joint drug agreement.

The Red Sox and MLB subsequently initiated investigations , interviewing Schilling, the staff member who allegedly made the comment, and at least one witness to the conversation.

Sources said investigations were thorough and the players' union was informed, and both probes came to the same conclusion.

"Completely baseless," one source said. "It didn't happen. The staff member did not say it, and he had no PED history whatsoever."

However, Schilling said there was no team probe into the incident.

 

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