LA reaches settlement with family of Tyler Skaggs

The Los Angeles Angels reached confidential settlement with the family of former pitcher Tyler Skaggs on Friday, settling a wrongful-death lawsuit related to his fatal overdose in 2019, according to ESPN’s Michael Rothstein. The settlement ended the civil trial in Orange County, California, after jurors deliberated for more than two days and submitted questions indicating the case could be decided in favor of the Skaggs family. Financial terms were not disclosed.

“The Skaggs family has reached a confidential settlement with Angels Baseball that brings an arduous six-year process to a close, allowing our families to focus on healing,” the family said in a statement. “We are deeply grateful to the members of this jury and our legal team. Their engagement and focus gave us faith, and now we have finality. This trial exposed the truth and we hope that Major League Baseball will now do its part to hold the Angels accountable. While nothing can bring Tyler back, we will continue to honor his memory.”

Skaggs, who spent five seasons in Los Angeles after two years with the Arizona Diamondbacks, died at age 27 on July 1, 2019, during the Angels’ trip to Texas. He was found in his hotel room hours before the team was to open the series against the Texas Rangers. A toxicology report determined that Skaggs died of a combination of alcohol, fentanyl and oxycodone intoxication, and the official cause was listed as terminal aspiration of gastric contents.

Former Angels communications director Eric Kay later admitted to giving Skaggs pills, including a counterfeit oxycodone pill laced with fentanyl. In February 2022, a federal jury in Texas convicted Kay of distribution of a controlled substance resulting in death and conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute. Kay was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison. Testimony during Kay’s criminal trial included statements from multiple MLB players who said they received oxycodone from Kay between 2017 and 2019.

The Skaggs family, widow Carli Skaggs and his parents filed a civil lawsuit in June 2021, seeking $118 million in lost future earnings, along with additional damages for emotional distress and punitive damages. During the trial, baseball salary experts testified that Skaggs’ potential lost career earnings ranged from approximately $21 million to nearly $125 million, while defense experts estimated the figure at no more than $32 million. Jurors later indicated, according to the jury foreman, that they had internally agreed on an award of about $100 million before deliberations were suspended for the settlement.

The trial lasted about three months and contained 31 days of courtroom proceedings, testimony from 44 witnesses and more than 300 exhibits. Witnesses included Angels players such as Mike Troutteam managers, medical and payroll experts, and relatives of Skaggs and Kai. Jurors were instructed to consider up to 26 issues related to negligence and liability, with nine of the 12 jurors required to agree on each finding.

Central to the case was whether the Angels knew or should have known that Kay was distributing unprescribed opioids to players. The family argued that the organization failed to monitor or discipline Kay despite signs of drug abuse, while the Angels argued that Kay acted outside the scope of his employment and that Skaggs covered up his substance use. The team also claimed that Skaggs had a history of addiction to painkillers before joining the Angels in 2013.

The settlement avoided a ruling that could have made the Angels the first American professional sports franchise to be held civilly liable for the death of a player. However, Major League Baseball said it would review the trial testimony, and Commissioner Rob Manfred previously indicated that potential league discipline remains under consideration.