New court filings have brought the untimely death of former Major League pitcher Tyler Skaggs back into the news, with current Cincinnati Reds pitcher Wade Miley named as one of his alleged drug suppliers.
Skaggs’ family is pursuing a wrongful death suit against his former team, the Los Angeles Angels, seeking $210 million in damages.
Skaggs died in a Texas hotel room on July 1, 2019 at age 27 after an accidental drug overdose. The Tarrant County medical examiner determined through an autopsy that Skaggs died of “mixed ethanol, fentanyl and oxycodone intoxication with terminal aspiration of gastric contents.”
Skaggs’ family filed the suit in 2021 after former Angels communications director Eric Kay was charged with distributing the drugs that allegedly led to the pitcher’s death. In 2022, Kay was sentenced to 22 months in prison after he was convicted of one count each of drug distribution resulting in death and drug conspiracy.
On Thursday, June 12, The Athletic reported that Skaggs’ former agent said in a deposition that Miley also supplied Skaggs with pills containing oxycodone.
Keep scrolling for the latest developments in the case.
Why Have New Details Emerged About Tyler Skaggs’ Death?
The Athletic reported on new court filings, including one that was accidentally posted publicly, related to the case on Thursday, bringing to light Skaggs’ and Kay’s alleged history of drug use. The family is attempting to demonstrate that the Angels were aware of Kay’s drug use and had reason to be aware that he was supplying drugs to Skaggs.
While depositions are typically sealed, The Athletic says it is not clear why these were posted publicly. Attorneys for the Angels accused Skaggs’ family of posting them publicly in court on Monday, June 9, which the family has denied.
What Have the Angels Said About the Suit?
The Angels filed a motion for summary judgment on May 30, asking for the case to be dismissed. The organization argues that Skaggs’ own actions make him responsible for his death.
“Under the law it is significant that Tyler Skaggs struggled with addiction for nearly a decade and knowingly used drugs from multiple different unsecured and illegal sources,” legal counsel for the Angels, Todd Theodora, said.
Current and former employees of the team declined to comment to The Athletic. Us Weekly has also reached out to the Angels for comment.
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How Is Former Pitcher Wade Miley Allegedly Involved?
The Angels’ motion included deposition from Skaggs’ former agent Ryan Hamill, in which he testified Skaggs told him Miley would sometimes supply him with prescription drugs. The two were teammates on the Arizona Diamondbacks from 2012 to 2013.
“He came clean,” Hamill testified. “He said he had been using — I believe it was Percocets —and he said he got them through Wade Miley.”
Miley’s name previously came up during Kay’s sentencing when prosecutors played a recording in which Kay accused Miley of being one of Skaggs’ suppliers. Miley is not facing criminal charges.
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Are Any Other Players Mentioned?
Former Angels Cam Bedrosian, C.J. Cron, Matt Harvey and Mike Morin all testified to receiving drugs from Kay during Kay’s trial, with Skaggs often acting as liaison. Filings showed that in 2017, Skaggs texted Morin, “Talked to EK [Eric Kay] can I buy one from you since you cleaned the guy out.” In 2019, he texted Harvey, “Can I get 2 lol.”
Harvey also testified during Kay’s trial that he provided drugs to Skaggs. MLB suspended him 60 days for violating the league’s drug policy and he has not pitched in the Majors since.
