Tyler Skaggs: The Latest In A Deadly Line Of Devastating Angel Tragedies
1965. Dick Wantz: Brain tumor.
1972. Chico Ruiz: Car accident.
1974. Bruce Heinbechner: Car accident.
(Footnote: I was covering the Angels in Palm Springs when this horrfic tragedy occurred.
This 6’1, 195-pound lefthander was poised to make the starting rotation.
During the 1972-1973 seasons at Triple-A Salt Lake City, Heinbechner, 23, impressed with a record of 23-14, which included 19 (unheard of today) complete games.
He wasn’t bad with the stick either. In 95 games over two summers, the Inglewood native hit .316, drove home 23 runs and had an OPS of .885.)
1977. Mike Miley: Car accident.
1978. Lyman Bostock: Shooting.
(Footnote: This was my final season covering the Angels and what a heart wrenching way to end it.
MURDER!!!
Lyman’s uncle, Ed Turner, was hosting a dinner party in Gary, Indiana. The Angels had played the White Sox earlier in the day.
Afterwards, Bostock, Barbara Smith, whom he had met that evening, and her sister, Joan Hawkins, all got into Turner’s car for the ride to Joan’s home.
To make a long story short, LEONARD SMITH finally caught up to car he was chasing, got out at a light, and fired a small gauge shotgun into the backseat, where Barbara and Bostock were sitting.
The bullet was meant for Barbara, who was hit in the neck. Lyman took the rest of the bullet in the head and died three hours later.
In his only season with the Angels, the 27 year old outfielder hit .296 with 71 RBIs in 147 games. He finished his four year career batting .311 and driving in 250 runs.)
1989. Donnie Moore: Shot his wife then himself.
2009. Nick Adenhart: Car accident.
2018. Luis Valbuena: Car accident.
2019. Tyler Skaggs???
Fallen Angels
Nine Angels, some prominent, others with potential, had their lives tragically snatched.
Weather they were taken by medical issues, automobile accidents or shootings, it doesn’t really matter.
Life is fragile. And there is no greater reminder of that than the recent passing of Skaggs.
What matters is that they were all taken from families, relatives, friends and teammates.
Twenty seven years old. A promising career in front of him. And it’s already over.
It ended way too soon. He as just starting to blossom. Now, we’ll never know.
A Woodland Hills native who grew up in Santa Monica, Skaggs was found unresponsive in his Southlake, Texas hotel room on July 1.
Predictably, the Angels – team and organization – were devastated.
So was the entire baseball world.
Commissioner Comments
MLB commissioner Rob Manfried issued the following statement:
“I am deeply saddened by today’s tragedy in Texas,” the statement began.
“All of us at Major League Baseball extend our deepest condolences to Tyler’s wife, Carli, their family, their friends and all of his Angels’ teammates and colleagues.
“We will support the Angels’ organization through this most difficult period.
“We will make a variety of resources available to Tyler’s teammates and other members of the baseball family.”
In a somber press conference surrounded by silence and tears, Billy Eppler addressed the media.
“Tyler brought joy to everybody around him,” the general manager began.
“He was magnetic. People were drawn to him.
“He was generous and kind and our team will never be the same without him, but forever we’ve been made better by him.
“We are truly grateful to have the honor to watch him grow and develop over the years.
“Grief is personal to all of us. It doesn’t have a timeline. It doesn’t have a road map.
“What is more important is we’ll all be here for each other, as a team, as an organization, and as a family.”
Remembering Adenhart
For Angel owner Arte Moreno, it rekindled the somber memories of the Adenhart fatality.
“The same feeling,” Moreno began.
“You can’t believe it. You keep thinking that someone is there, and they’re not.
“The team is such a family. You take a piece out from the family, and there’s always a hole.”
“The team all got together a couple of times,” manager Brad Ausmus said.
“Some of the guys spoke, but I think most importantly, in the end, we were able to talk about Tyler and laugh about some of the stories, some of the goofy things he did.
“Listen to some of his music. It was good.”
Like Moreno, the skipper was able to connect the dots…to former teammate Darryl Kile.
“This feels identical,” Ausmus remembered. A former teammate with the Astros, Kile had moved on to St.Louis when he died suddenly in 2002.
“To a man, it’s the same advise, and that’s that there’s no handbook for this.
“You’ve got to go with your honest feelings. If you do that, then you’re not going to be wrong.”
Drafted Together
Mike Trout (No. 25) and Skaggs (No.40, supplemental) were both 2009 first round selections.
“My first at-bat I got up there, and all I was thinking about was him,” Trout said.
“It was tough playing out there. But Skaggs wouldn’t want us taking another day off.”
“It just kind of felt right,” Kole Calhoun chimed in.
“We know we got an Angel watching over us now.
“He was a guy that lit up the room.
“His energy and his positivity and the person he was, it ran deep and it touched this organization for a long time and a lot of people around baseball.
“When I got to the plate, it just felt right to pay some respects to him. We know we’ve got somebody watching over us there.”
But before Skaggs ever took the mound at Anaheim Stadium, he was off to Arizona.
On July 25, 2010 the Angels packaged Patrick Corbin, Joe Saunders, Rafael Rodriquez and a player to be named later to the D’Backs for pitcher Dan Haren.
That player was Skaggs, who was dispatched to Arizona on August 7.
Homecoming!
After making 13 starts (3-6, 5.43 ERA) over two seasons (2012-2013), in the desert, Skaggs was headed back to Anaheim.
He was part of a three team trade which also involved the White Sox.
On December 23, 2013, the Angels sent Mark Trumbo and A.J. Schugel to the Diamondbacks in exchange for Skaggs. They also received Chicago lefthander Hector Santiago in the complicated transaction.
The rest is history.
In his five seasons (he did not pitch in 2015) with the Angels, Skaggs was 25-32 with a 4.25 earned run average.
The 6’4, 225-pounder was 7-7 (5.43 ERA) in 15 starts this summer.
In what sadly turned out to be his last start, June 29 in Oakland, Skaggs pitched 4 1/3 innings in a 4-0 loss.
When the Angels returned from the Texas Tragedy, flowers and cards decorated the main entrance to Anaheim Stadium.
The celebration was held on July 12.
Fittingly, the evening began with Mom Debbie throwing a “perfect” first pitch strike to Andrew Heaney.
Skaggs’ locker was untouched. His uniform hung in the dugout.
Taylor Cole and Felix Pena then combined to no hit Seattle, 13-0.
Ironically, the Angels scored 7 runs in the first inning. Skaggs was born on 7/13!
Afterwards, Skaggs’ teammates covered the mound with their “No. 45” jerseys.
Tyler Wayne Skaggs may be gone, but he will NEVER….. EVER….. BE FORGOTTEN!!!
The OC Register & Mike Penner (LA Times) Contributed To This Article
Image: nbcnews.com
John Stellman
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