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Major League Baseball has been accused of working with the Los Angeles Angels to treat Eric Kay's drug addiction, long before he supplied pitcher Tyler Skaggs with the fentanyl-laced pill that killed him.
Former Angels communications director Kay is serving 22 years in federal prison for providing the pill that led to Skaggs' death in July 2019. He was just 27.
The ex-pitcher's family has brought a wrongful death civil trial against the Angels and on Monday, the team's top HR executive testified that they worked with MLB to treat Kay's drug use.
According to Deborah Johnston, Kay 'was drug tested under the MLB policy, not the Angels policy.'
She told the court: 'When there is an illegal drug, or we go through an investigation and we find somebody has used illegal substances on property, one of the options is to terminate... but another option is to work with MLB, as we did in this case.'
Her claims contrast with other testimony presented in the case. So far, witnesses have broadly insisted that they were unaware of any drug abuse by Kay.
The Angeles should be held responsible for the death of Tyler Skaggs, according to a lawsuit
Eric Kay was convicted of providing the fentanyl-tainted pill that led to Skaggs' fatal overdose
Skaggs' widow, Carli (center), is embraced at the trial in the wrongful death lawsuit
Deborah Johnston, VP of Human Resources at Angels Baseball
Following Johnston's testimony, MLB denied the allegations. 'Neither MLB or The Drug Oversight Committee, which is responsible for administering and overseeing MLB’s Drug Policy and Prevention Program, was notified of or involved in the treatment of Eric Kay,' an MLB spokesperson told The Athletic.
Under league requirements, suspected drug abuse must be reported to MLB. From there, a Drug Policy Oversight Committee comes up with a treatment plan.
As reported by the Athletic, the committee is made up of 'four MLB-determined specialists, in conjunction with a team's EAP [Employee Assistance Program] doctor or team doctor.'
The Angels' case centers around the claim that they used the team's EAP and its doctor, Erik Abell, to treat Kay.
Angels team doctor Craig Milhouse said he considered the EAP a branch of the league - and therefore, by using Abell, the team had followed the rules. But Millhouse never said that the team actively notified MLB.
Skaggs family attorneys have accused the Angels of violating league rules by not reporting Kay's drug abuse. They dispute that Abell's psychiatric treatment satisfied the team's reporting requirements.
But there has been no suggestion from the Skaggs family lawyers that they believe MLB acted improperly.
