RIP Tyler Skaggs

[Chip R]

This is not going to end well for the Angels.

[BCubb2003]

This is not going to end well for the Angels.

Do you think it might lead to a Pittsburgh Drug Trials scenario?

[Chip R]

Do you think it might lead to a Pittsburgh Drug Trials scenario?

Could be. Difference is that team personnel are involved. The players now are going to be seen in a more sympathetic light since the opiate use wasn't necessarily for recreational use.

[bucksfan2]

I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that a lot of players across MLB use opioids.

162 games is a loooong season full of bumps, bruises, sore arms, back spasms, etc.



The opioid epidemic isn’t just a “poor people” thing or a “druggie” or “bad people” thing, it’s a people thing. It doesn’t discriminate.

I don't think opiods are all that prevalent in MLB. I think non-opiod pain killers would be much more prevalent than anyone would want to admit.

Not to get into a political discussion, but I think the major sports leagues should really get behind marijuana, both in terms of medicinal and recreational. It can be used as a pain killer and is a much safer version of it. Baseball is unique in that the long season doesn't really have any sustained breaks. You can't really nurse an injury because of the day to day schedule. You would much rather have someone who uses some form of marijuana on a regular basis over an opiod.

[Chip R]

I don't think opiods are all that prevalent in MLB. I think non-opiod pain killers would be much more prevalent than anyone would want to admit.

Not to get into a political discussion, but I think the major sports leagues should really get behind marijuana, both in terms of medicinal and recreational. It can be used as a pain killer and is a much safer version of it. Baseball is unique in that the long season doesn't really have any sustained breaks. You can't really nurse an injury because of the day to day schedule. You would much rather have someone who uses some form of marijuana on a regular basis over an opiod.

MLB and the MLBPA are talking about testing for opioids.

https://mlb.nbcsports.com/2019/10/15...he-wrong-move/

[westofyou]

Whatever drugs are prevalent in society, be it weed, booze, cocaine, greenies or tobacco count on a portion of players dabbling in them too. They are not gods, nor robots. They are young men making more money than most of the people in the country and they are immersed in the beat and rhythm of their generation and the world around them.

[BCubb2003]

Whatever drugs are prevalent in society, be it weed, booze, cocaine, greenies or tobacco count on a portion of players dabbling in them too. They are not gods, nor robots. They are young men making more money than most of the people in the country and they are immersed in the beat and rhythm of their generation and the world around them.

That’s a good way to put it. MLB already has an employee assistance program, but will teams be held accountable when they ignore the problem, or will the new measures just be punishment for the players?

[westofyou]

That’s a good way to put it. MLB already has an employee assistance program, but will teams be held accountable when they ignore the problem, or will the new measures just be punishment for the players?

The Cocaine scandal really hit the Expos and the Pirates hard, I expect any teams turning their backs would have to absorb a penalty as well as the blame

[Phoenix2]

Whatever drugs are prevalent in society, be it weed, booze, cocaine, greenies or tobacco count on a portion of players dabbling in them too. They are not gods, nor robots. They are young men making more money than most of the people in the country and they are immersed in the beat and rhythm of their generation and the world around them.

And they are grown men who are responsible for their actions.

[westofyou]

And they are grown men who are responsible for their actions.

Exactly, they aren't children

[klw]

Indictment issued
https://www.latimes.com/sports/angel...er-skaggs-case

Former Angels employee Eric Kay has been charged by federal authorities in Texas with distributing fentanyl in connection with the overdose death of pitcher Tyler Skaggs, according to court documents reviewed by The Times.

Skaggs, 27, died in his Southlake, Texas, hotel room July 1, 2019, before the Angels were to play the Texas Rangers. He was discovered on his bed, fully clothed, with no signs of trauma.

A toxicology report by the Tarrant County medical examiner found the opioids fentanyl and oxycodone in his system. The medical examiner listed the cause of death as “alcohol, fentanyl and oxycodone intoxication with terminal aspiration of gastric contents,” meaning he choked on his vomit.
...
Kay, who worked in the Angels’ media relations department for 24 years before departing after Skaggs’ death, said in October he was cooperating with the investigation of Skaggs’ death. In a statement at the time issued through his attorney, Kay said cooperating was “the right thing to do” and “it’s time for everybody to stand up and take responsibility for their respective roles” in the death.

ESPN reported last year that Kay told federal agents he supplied Skaggs with opioids and he abused drugs with the pitcher for several years.

The attorney for Kay previously described Skaggs as “an addict who overdosed.”