Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Wade Miley addressed the accusation that he supplied former teammate Tyler Skaggs – who died of an overdose in 2019 – with prescription drugs when they were teammates with the Arizona Diamondbacks, claiming he was ‘never a witness for any of this.’
‘I hate what happened to Tyler,’ Miley told reporters on Friday, June 13, a day after The Athletic reported that Miley’s name surfaced in new court filings. ‘It sucks. My thoughts are with his family and friends.
‘But I’m not going to sit here and talk about things that somebody might have said about me or whatnot.
‘I was never a witness for any of this. I’ve never been accused of any wrongdoing.’
Miley’s name came up in a deposition with Skaggs’ former agent in the wrongful death lawsuit filed by Skaggs’ family against the Los Angeles Angels in June 2021, seeking $210 million in damages. Ryan Hamill of Creative Artists Agency said in the deposition that he was concerned with Skaggs’ drug use in 2013 and informed his family.
“(Skaggs) came clean,” Hamill testified, according to The Athletic. “He said he had been using – I believe it was Percocets – and he said he got them through Wade Miley.”
Miley and Skaggs were teammates with the Diamondbacks in 2012 and 2013.
The 38-year-old Miley refused to answer further questions about the report – including whether he had been contacted by MLB – and maintained ‘no wrongdoing.’
Miley’s name also surfaced in the criminal proceedings against Angels communications director Eric Kay that resulted in a 22-year sentence. Kay informed his mother on a recorded prison phone call that Miley had been a drug source for Skaggs.
The filings were from the Skaggs family’s attorneys as part of a motion for summary judgment as potential evidence to demonstrate that multiple Angels employees were aware of Kay’s drug use and that he was providing illegal drugs to Skaggs. It was part of the testimony, including portions of depositions from witnesses that were made public to the court’s online portal, and uncovered by The Athletic, instead of being kept under seal.
Reds manager Terry Francona told reporters he found out about the report “when everybody else” did.
“From where I sit, other than me caring about Miley and certainly having respect for the sadness of the family, there’s nothing for me to say,” Francona said. “I don’t know anything about it. I don’t think commenting makes a whole lot of sense.”
Miley had the two best two seasons of his 15-year career in 2012-2013 with the Diamondbacks, making the All-Star Game in 2012, going 26-21 with a 3.44 ERA, pitching 397 ⅓ innings in 65 games. He since has pitched for seven more teams, signing a minor-league contract this spring with the Reds and called back up to the major leagues a week ago.
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