Answers to Quiz #1

The only two current starting pitchers who have won a World Series title with at least two different teams?

How about Boomer and the Old Blowhard Himself.

David Wells won a World Series with the Toronto Blue Jays in 1992 (the first Canadian club to win the title, and their first of two straight championships) and the 1998 New York Yankees, one of the greatest teams ever fielded.

Curt Schilling, meanwhile, after toiling through some terrible Philadelphia Phillies teams (how many Phillies teams are good?), jetted out to the Southwest, where he helped lead the Arizona Diamondbacks to become the modern-era team to win a World Series title in the fewest years since its founding. Of course, Schill also took a starring role with the "Idiots" of the 2004 Boston Red Sox, who erased 86 years of New England psychosis with a sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals.

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Now, if I had a vote for the Baseball Hall of Fame, neither Wells nor Schilling would have their slot darkened on my sheet. Yes, Schilling has over 3,000 strikeouts, which in the past was automatic. But he didn't catch fire until the late 1990s, when he finally figured out that he needed to take better care of his body. He gets props for his considerable charity work. He was the main attraction for the pivotal Game 6 of the 2004 ALCS against the Yankees (the "bloody sock" game).

But he can't keep his trap shut, has openly spared with at least two nationally known baseball writers (SI's Jon Leyman and the admittedly insufferable Mike Celizic of MSNBC), and racked up 5 seasons of double-digit losses, among other blots. Was Schilling dominating for a long stretch of his career? In my mind, the answer is no. He has 2001, 2002, and 2004 on his record as phenomenal years, but he also has hoe-hum years in '03, '05, and '07.


Wells, to me, is even less of a vote-earner. He did not hit anything close to a stride until he was about 35. He was dominant in '98, when he hurled a perfect game (and later admitted, much to Commissioner Bud Selig's delight, no doubt, that he was terrificly hung over during the milestone), and with Toronto in 2000, going 20-8. Wells certainly shined in New York (68-28 in 123 starts), reveling in being on the biggest stage in the game. He is a tough-as-nails pitcher when his back isn't bothering him, and while he isn't dominating, he is intimidating.

It is the rest of his career that is so uninspiring and, to me, doesn't warrant highlighting in Cooperstown. Instead, we'll be left with his entertaining personality and some key moments from his career. "Key" moments include getting fined by Bud Selig for inappropriate comments, posting a letter in his locker, in full view of reporters, from Selig warning Wells, and getting into altercations with fans. Let's not forget that Wells alleged that he was misquoted in his autobiography, either.