Late last week, a report said that Los Angeles Angels public relations employee told federal investigators that some team officials were told about Tyler Skaggs’ drug use “long before his death.”
Keith Allison from Hanover, MD, USA, Tyler Skaggs (14613198219), CC BY-SA 2.0
This employee said that he would provide Skaggs with oxycodone and abuse it with him.
Eric Kay, the Angels’ director of communications also told the drug Enforcement Agency the names of five other players he believed were using opiates during their time with the team.
Skaggs died in a hotel in Southlake, Texas on July 1 from choking on his own vomit, according to the county’s medical examiner’s office. Skaggs’ autopsy found evidence of fentanyl, oxycodone, and alcohol in his system.
Kay told investigators that he illegally acquired oxycodone pills and gave three to Skaggs a day or two before the team left for a road trip to Texas.
Kay told investigators that hours before Skaggs’ death in July, he was in his hotel room and texted Kay to visit. Kay also told investigators that Skaggs snorted three lines of crushed opioids. Kay recognized that that two of the lines were oxycodone but the third was not a substance he recognized.
When Skaggs’ cause of death was announced, his family issued a statement.
“We are heartbroken to learn that the passing of our beloved Tyler was the result of a combination of dangerous drugs and alcohol. That is completely out of character for someone who worked so hard to become a Major League Baseball player and had a very promising future in the game he loved so much.”
Tyler Skaggs was a starting pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Los Angeles Angels. He had been in the league since 2012 and had made massive strides in the league.
Skaggs is just one of the latest of a long list of notable people affected by the opioid crisis that has led to the death of hundreds of thousands of Americans.
Next Steps
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