- The family of deceased Los Angeles Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs is suing the team for wrongful death.
- Skaggs died in 2019 from an overdose of fentanyl, oxycodone, and alcohol provided by a team employee.
- The family alleges the Angels knew or should have known that former communications director Eric Kay was providing drugs to players.
Testimony continues this week in the wrongful death lawsuit brought against the Los Angeles Angels by the family of former pitcher Tyler Skaggs, and one of Major League Baseball’s biggest stars could soon take the witness stand inside an Orange County, California courtroom as part of the proceedings.
Kay is serving a 22-year prison sentence for his role in Skaggs’ death. The Skaggs family is seeking $210 million in damages, according to The Athletic
Depositions filed earlier this month, as well as opening statements and initial testimony during the first week of the civil trial, have already produced compelling new details related to the case. Moreover, Angels star Mike Trout is one of several current or former MLB players expected to either give live testimony in court or have their testimony read in court as soon as this week.
Here’s a breakdown of what happened during the first days of this civil trial and what else to know about the wrongful death lawsuit between the family of Tyler Skaggs and the Los Angeles Angels:
Tyler Skaggs death: How did Angels pitcher die?
Tyler Skaggs was found dead in a Texas hotel room just hours before the Angels were scheduled to begin a series against the Texas Rangers. He was 27 years old and in the midst of his seventh MLB season. The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s office later determined Skaggs had a mixture of ethanol, fentanyl and oxycodone in his system at the time of his death.
Investigators found a number of pills inside Skaggs’ hotel room, including a single blue pill that closely resembled a 30-milligram oxycodone tablet. Lab analysis revealed it had been laced with fentanyl and a federal jury eventually found Eric Kay guilty of distribution of a controlled substance resulting in death.
Kay initially denied knowing Skaggs was a drug user or being in his hotel room the night before his death in an interview with law enforcement, according to the Justice Department in 2022. However, text messages revealed Skaggs had asked Kay to stop by his hotel room with pills late on the evening of June 30 and Kay admitted to an Angels colleague he had visited Skaggs’ room the night before Skaggs was found dead.
Tyler Skaggs lawsuit: Key witness closes first week in court
The first week of the civil trial inside Orange County Superior Court in Santa Ana, California ended with former Angels vice president of communications Tim Mead facing questions related to what extent he knew Kay, the Angels’ communications director, was abusing drugs and providing them to Skaggs and other Angels players. The Skaggs family, in their lawsuit, allege in 2017 that Mead saw 60 pills in packages of 10 pills each within baggies hidden in socks and shoes at Kay’s home.
But Mead said he ‘did not recall’ seeing the drugs at Kay’s house and repeatedly denied in court that he knew Mead was dealing drugs to players in the organization. Mead testified he thought Kay was struggling with pills that had been prescribed by a doctor.
‘I looked at him as a father to three kids who was battling demons,’ Mead said, according to the Orange County Register.
How much the Angels knew about Kay’s drug abuse and his drug dealing to players is at the heart of the lawsuit brought by the Skaggs family against the organization. An attorney for the Skaggs family argued last week that the Angels ignored the team’s drug and alcohol abuse policies and put Skaggs ‘directly in harm’s way’ by allowing Kay on the road trip, according to reports. Kay had only recently returned to work in April 2019 after a stint at an outpatient rehab clinic following an incident in the office involving erratic behavior.
The Angels countered that they were never made aware of Skaggs’ drug abuse problems and instead placed the blame on Skaggs for using ‘a reckless combination’ of alcohol and drugs. Angels owner Arte Moreno and team president John Carpino were both in attendance in the court room on the first day of the trial last week, according to multiple reports.
Current Angels traveling secretary Tom Taylor was set to testify on Monday, Oct. 20. Taylor has also been accused by the Skaggs family of knowing about Kay’s drug abuse and drug dealing within the organization. Taylor has previously denied those allegations.
Why Angels star Mike Trout could testify
Angels star Mike Trout and Skaggs were teammates for five seasons and Trout recently became a compelling figure in the case. A filing by Skaggs’ family attorneys in Orange County Superior Court earlier this month included deposition testimony from an Angels clubhouse attendant stating that he witnessed Trout offer to pay for Kay’s rehab in 2018.
The filing also mentioned four other Angels employees and executives discussing clubhouse behavior that had occurred involving Kay, most notably an alleged dare in which Kay ate a pimple off Trout’s back in exchange for money.
Trout is among the current and former MLB players who might be called to testify in this civil trial against the Angels. The Athletic reported Trout could take the stand as soon as Tuesday, Oct. 21.
Tyler Skaggs case: Were more MLB players involved?
Yes.
The Angels have argued Skaggs knowingly used illegal pills and had numerous drug sources in addition to Kay, including former MLB pitcher Matt Harvey. Skaggs is also alleged to have introduced opioids to five other Angels players by telling them Kay could help procure the pills, according to team attorneys.
Harvey and former Angels players C.J. Cron, Cam Bedrosian and Mike Morin each testified at Kay’s criminal trial that he provided them with illegal pills and could appear again in the civil case. Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Andrew Heaney, a close friend of Skaggs, is considered a potential witness for the civil trial as well, according to The Athletic.
Cincinnati Reds pitcher Wade Miley was also accused of providing Skaggs with illegal drugs in a court filing. He addressed the allegation with reporters in June.
‘I hate what happened to Tyler. It sucks. My thoughts are with his family and friends,’ Miley said. ‘But I’m not going to sit here and talk about things that somebody might have said about me or whatnot. I was never a witness for any of this. I’ve never been accused of any wrongdoing.’