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Mike Trout took the stand Tuesday in a Santa Ana, Calif., courtroom to testify in a trial over whether his Los Angeles Angels should be held responsible for the overdose death of pitcher Tyler Skaggs.
Skaggs died in 2019 after taking fentanyl-laced oxycodone, mixed with alcohol, provided by the team’s former communications director, Eric Kay, who is serving 22 years in prison. Skaggs’ family has since filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the Angels, saying the team knew about Kay’s past drug history, which poses dangers.
Trout testified that players would pay Kay for bizarre stunts, leaving Trout to raise an eyebrow. At one point, a clubhouse assistant suggested the players quit, Trout said, because Kay might be using the money for a “bad purpose,” which Trout said he immediately assumed was drugs.
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Mike Trout wears a number 45 badge in honor of Tyler Skaggs during a Texas Rangers game at Globe Life Park in Arlington. (Kevin Jairaj/USA Today Sports)
Trout said he wouldn’t sign autographs Kay had asked for unless he knew who they were going to out of concern they could be sold for money.
Trout said it was clear Kay “needed something.”
“I just didn’t know what it was,” Trout said.
The three-time MVP said he had only seen Skaggs smoke marijuana and drink alcohol and never believed he used other drugs.
Los Angeles Angels designated hitter Mike Trout reacts during a news conference about the death of pitcher Tyler Skagg before a game against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Park in Arlington. (Kevin Jairaj/USA Today Sports)
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Skaggs’ family is seeking $118 million for Skaggs’ lost earnings, damages for pain and suffering and punitive damages against the team. In addition to Trout, other players, including former Angels pitcher Wade Miley, who currently plays for the Cincinnati Reds, could also testify in what is expected to be a week-long trial. Miley was dropped by Skaggs’ former agent, Ryan Hamil, in an episode earlier this year as a drug supplier to Skaggs.
Former New York Mets ace Matt Harvey admitted during Kay’s trial that he supplied drugs to Skaggs. The two were teammates with the Angels the year of Skaggs’ death.
Harvey, CJ Cron, Mike Morin and Cam Bedrosian also said in court that they had been given drugs by Kay.
Los Angeles’ Tyler Skaggs pitches against the Oakland Athletics at Angel Stadium on June 6, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
Skaggs was 27 when he was found in a hotel room in Southlake, Texas, before the Angels were to play the Texas Rangers.
