Angels Team Wanted to Play Tuesday to Honor Tyler Skaggs
Tyler Skaggs Angels Wanted to Play Tuesday ... To Honor Pitcher
UPDATE
5:05 PM PT -- The Rangers honored Skaggs with his jersey number painted on the pitcher's mound for Tuesday night's game ... and a moment of silence was held before first pitch.
UPDATE
The players are also paying tribute to Skaggs with #45 patches on their jerseys.
UPDATE
For you, 45. pic.twitter.com/ahUJHO9mdR
— Texas Rangers (@Rangers) July 2, 2019 @Rangers
The Los Angeles Angels players and manager had a team discussion and agreed to play the Texas Rangers on Tuesday night because they felt it's what Tyler Skaggs would have wanted.
Angels manager Brad Ausmus along with General Manager Billy Eppler, owner Arte Moreno and president John Carpino addressed the media Tuesday in a very emotional press conference to reflect on the 27-year-old pitcher who died Monday afternoon.
Ausmus and Eppler fought back tears as they explained what Skaggs meant to the team -- a beloved teammate, friend and family man.
Team officials said they still have no idea about what led to Skaggs' sudden death -- they're waiting on information from the medical examiner.
The Angels -- along with the Rangers and MLB -- agreed to postpone Monday's scheduled game in the wake of Tyler's death. But, Ausmus said the team met on Tuesday and decided to get back to action.
Ausmus and Eppler explained that playing baseball can help the players take their minds off of the sadness and give them a "refuge" from the tragedy.
Ausmus noted he doesn't think sitting in a hotel room would do the players any good.
Several Angels players attended the press conference -- including Mike Trout and Albert Pujols. They all sat quietly in the corner as Ausmus, Eppler and Moreno talked about Skaggs.
As we previously reported, Skaggs was found unconscious in his Texas hotel room where the team was staying around 2:20 PM on Monday ... and he was pronounced dead a short time later.
There's been a lot of speculation about how Skaggs died -- but so far, officials have not released a cause of death.
The Medical Examiner has said there were no obvious signs of suicide or foul play. An autopsy was conducted Tuesday morning but no word on the results. Toxicology results could take 4 to 6 weeks to come back.
Skaggs had just pitched 2 days before his death -- logging 5 strikeouts in 4.5 innings against the Oakland A's.
Skaggs had been having a standout 2019 season ... posting 7 wins and 78 strikeouts in 79.2 innings pitched.
Originally Published -- 2:22 PM PT
