Notebook: Schilling shells out opinion

Curt Schilling of the Boston Red Sox says that Barry Bonds and Mark McGwire’s refusals to address accusations of steroids use are tantamount to admissions.

“If someone wrote that stuff about me and I didn’t sue their (butt) off, am I not admitting that there’s some legitimacy to it?” he said on HBO’s “Costas Now.”

When asked about Schilling’s remarks before the Giants played the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday night, Bonds responded: “Don’t worry, my day will come.”

Schilling said “this will be the steroids era forever” and proposed that Jose Canseco and Rafael Palmeiro should be punished for steroids use.

“Jose Canseco admitted he cheated his entire career,” Schilling said. “Everything he ever did should be wiped clean. I think his MVP should go back and should go to the runner-up.”

As for Palmeiro, Schilling said: “The year he tested positive, nothing he did that year should count, which I think would take away 3,000 hits for him.”

Aaron ball keeps value

Andrew Knuth, who owns the final home run baseball hit by Hank Aaron, calls it the “pre-steroid record ball.”

With Barry Bonds about to break Aaron’s record of 755 home runs, Knuth admits his investment will likely go down in value at least temporarily. But not in his mind.

“I think it’s going to be the pre-steroid record ball until Alex Rodriguez or somebody breaks the record,” Knuth said.

Knuth, a 68-year-old Weston, Conn., resident, bought Aaron’s 755th home run ball for $650,000 at an auction in 1999. He learned of the sale from a colleague whose wife was Aaron’s secretary.

Autopsy released

A preliminary autopsy report shows that a burst blood vessel in Mike Coolbaugh’s neck, near his brain, killed the Tulsa Drillers hitting coach when he was hit by a batted ball on Sunday.

Clearing the bases

Reliever Joel Pineiro, designated for assignment earlier this week by the Red Sox, was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket. … New York Yankees slugger Jason Giambi is set to start a minor league rehab assignment Friday night with Class A Tampa (Fla.) and hopes to rejoin the team next week.