BOSTON — Curt Schilling received a cortisone shot in his right shoulder on Friday, beginning a treatment plan the Red Sox hope will bring the right-hander back before the end of the season, The Boston Globe reported.

The painkilling shot would allow Schilling to begin rehabbing an injured shoulder tendon. Boston's team physician believes the tendon is damaged, not torn, and that rehabilitation gives Schilling his best chance to play this year.

Schilling's physician, Dr. Craig Morgan, disagrees, saying the tendon is torn and requires surgery.

On Saturday, Morgan said he could not confirm that Schilling had received the cortisone shot, but repeated his opinion that the team's recommended course of action is doomed to fail.

He said that within a couple of weeks of the shot, "(Schilling) won't even be able to exercise."

Schilling could not immediately be reached for comment. A team spokesman said Saturday that Red Sox would not comment.

The team signed the 41-year-old pitcher to an $8 million, one-year contract in the offseason. Morgan said Schilling agreed to follow the team's strong recommendation to rehabilitate the shoulder because he was concerned the Red Sox would attempt to invalidate his contract if he chose surgery.

Schilling spent seven weeks on the disabled list last year with tendinitis in the shoulder. But he passed the physical for the contract he agreed to on Nov. 6.

Schilling was 9-8 with a 3.87 ERA in 24 games last season. In the postseason, he went 3-0 with a 3.00 ERA to help the Red Sox win their second World Series title in four years.