BOSTON – With television ads, charity work, and of course, pitching for the Red Sox, Curt Schilling has become an omnipresent face in the region with only two months into his first season for the team.

Schilling has appeared in ads for New England Ford Dealers, Dunkin’ Donuts and Reebok, causing actor Ben Affleck, a Cambridge native, to joke about the pitcher’s popularity during an April charity luncheon.

“I really made a conscious effort not to overdo the ads,” Schilling told the Boston Sunday Globe. “But the ads were on the air so much that it left people with the impression I’ve done a lot of different things.”

And he has.

Aside from endorsements, Schilling goes on WROR radio weekly with morning DJs Loren and Wally and he fights diseases through his family’s charities, Curt’s Pitch for ALS, to battle Lou Gehrig’s disease, and The Curt and Shonda Schilling Melanoma Foundation.

“Schilling is a proven winner, a workhorse who wears his passion on his sleeve,” said Daniel Ladik, a marketing professor at Suffolk University. “There’s no question; he wants to be here, and he wants to win. He’s an extrovert to the nth degree. I can’t name another Red Sox player like that.”

Schilling’s teammates are also well known to the local public, but their off-the-field appearances vary.

Red Sox right fielder Kevin Millar is in television ads for KFC fried chicken while outfielder Johnny Damon has been featured in ads for New England Ford Dealers and a promotional event for Gillette Co. Shortstop Nomar Garciaparra has starred in ads for Fleet Bank and Dunkin’ Donuts.

“We do hundreds of commercials every year, and very few of them get talked about,” said Scott Kavanagh, regional account director for New England Ford Dealers’ ad agency, J. Walter Thompson. “The hitchhiker spot with Curt got more positive feedback than any spot.”

Schilling would not disclose how much he makes from his ad appearances. The Red Sox are paying him $12 million this year.

Schilling’s family has also received some of the attention from advertisers, including in the Ford commercial when his wife, Shonda, and their four children order him to do push-ups and overlook him when it’s time to drink lemonade.

“By letting people see you and your family, they see that, and they become more comfortable around you,” Schilling said.

Sox activate Nixon, send down Anastacio Martinez

Trot Nixon was activated from the disabled list Wednesday night, and he made his 2004 debut against the Colorado Rockies.

The Red Sox sent right-hander Anastacio Martinez to Triple-A Pawtucket to make room on the roster for Nixon, who had been out all season with a slight herniated disc and a strained left quadriceps.

Nixon set career bests last year with a .306 batting average and 28 home runs.

, and he also drove in 87 runs in 134 games. He injured his back before the season and had to sit out six more weeks after injuring his quad during rehab.

Nixon batted sixth against the Rockies.

Martinez was 2-0 with a 6.52 ERA in 10 games after being recalled on May 21, but manager Terry Francona wanted to find more innings for right-hander Scott Williamson, who was activated from the DL last week.

“The time he spent with us has been great for him and great for us,” Francona said. “He’s shown up a couple of times really, really well. I think he will go back to Triple-A and be a better pitcher. If he can go back and make an impact in Triple-A, he will be back pitching for us.”

AP-ES-06-16-04 1930EDT