1-Man’s Opinion on Sports-Wednesday “Angels Baseball–Dark Day”

Posted by on February 16th, 2022  •  1 Comment  • 

“Angels Baseball….Tragic-Toxic”

==================

His nickname when he was one of the aces of the NY Mets staff was the ‘Dark Knight”

And now Matt Harvey  has talked about the dark side of baseball, within the Angels clubhouse.

All this and more in the midst of the sad trial into the drug-related death of pitcher Tyler Skaggs.  It’s all wrapped around the reality that PR-Director Eric Kay was a drug addict, who became a drug dealer in his clubhouse, buying-selling dangerous drugs to players from 2017-till-2019 when Skaggs overdosed while on a Halos road trip to Texas.

All this confirmed by Harvey, a once front line starter for the Mets, whose career spiraled downward as he went from the Reds to Angels to Orioles.  Arm issues and now we find out drug issues.

When last seen, his contract expired in Baltimore, leaving behind a trail of stories about his dominance, and his penchant for nightlife in the majors.

And then on the stand to testify in the Eric Kay drug dealing trial, Harvey told the stories no-one wanted to hear, but most feared.

That his teammate Tyler Skaggs was addicted to painkillers.  That Skaggs asked Harvey to help him get drugs.  That Skaggs used the PR Director as his own personal drug dealer.

That Kay delivered drugs to at least 4-Angels players in the clubhouse.  Putting envelopes of drugs in their locker stalls.  Picking up payments in drop payments and electronic transactions..

It was the fatal fetanyl that killed Skaggs.  It was packets of oxycodone Kay delivered to a group of players.  It was evidence of venmo financial payments from players to Kay, fromKay to a known drug dealer.

It was evidence of text messages between Skaggs and a friend drug dealer.  It was Kay’s text messages to a clubhouse attendant, and some 30-texts to a known drug dealer in the days before and after Skaggs death.

And it was supplemental testimony from other players on the Angels staff, and what they knew about Skaggs, what they did with Skaggs, how they interacted with Kay.  It was widespread, from CJ Cron to Cam Bedrosian to others.

It was sad to hear Carli Skaggs, the widow left behind, to reveal her husband’s drinking problems; that the pressure he felt to stay on the mound; and the sad realization she never knew he was addicted to opioids.

The sleazy side of baseball was delivered by the ego driven Harvey, once the ace of the Mets staff.  Under a grant of immunity, he testified he was a cocaine abuser with the Mets and with the Angels.  That he shared drugs with Skaggs.  That the young Angels ace delivered him drugs, and that Skaggs asked him to get drugs for him.  And that Eric Kay was the middleman in the clubhouse in the oxycodone for cash transactions.

How horrid this must be for the benevolent owner Arte Moreno, for President John Carpino, for former VP-Tim Mead and for those who still work for the Halos.

And all this wrapped around a franchise already stung-stained by the episodes by slugger Josh Hamilton-drug infected, and the death of pitcher Nick Adenheart, killed by a drunk driver.

If it happened in the Angels clubhouse, be scared it might be going on in other clubhouses too.

And you think the cocaine trials of the 1970s, or the amphetamine mess of the 80s or the steroid stain in the early 2000s was a blight on baseball.  Now this disgrace..

You can root for your team, your favorite player, cheer for the pennant races and enjoy the playoff and World Series games.  But you never know the depths of what happens behind closed doors, in niteclubs, or hotel rooms away from the stadiums.

The ‘Dark Night’ just told us how bad it was at Angels Stadium.  Probably just the tip of the iceberg about a Toxic-Tragedy.

===============================
 

Please follow and like us:

One Response to “1-Man’s Opinion on Sports-Wednesday “Angels Baseball–Dark Day””

  1. Bob Burdge says:

    Reminds me of the movie “Damn Yankees”. Sell Your Soul to the devil to be on a MLB Field.
    Baseball is about “Relationships”. Given a choice, a World Series Ring or giving up The Relationships You acquired along the way. How many would take The Ring???

Leave a Comment:

Your email address will not be published.