Former MLB infielder Sean Burroughs suffered fentanyl poisoning when he collapsed and died in the parking lot of a Long Beach, California, baseball field in May. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner revealed.
Burroughs’ death was ruled an accident two months after he was found unresponsive next to his car after dropping off his son, Knox, for a Little League game. The 43-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene after he failed to respond to CPR attempts to revive him.
Burroughs was the ninth overall pick by the San Diego Padres in the 1998 MLB Draft. He played four seasons with the Padres and one each with the Tampa Bay Rays, Arizona Diamondbacks and Minnesota Twins.
After his stint with the Rays in 2005, Burroughs was out of baseball for several years as he battled drug and alcohol addiction. Then-D-backs general manager Kevin Towers, who was the Padres’ GM when Burroughs was drafted, gave him a chance to return in 2011.
For his career, Burroughs hit .278 with a .690 OPS, 68 doubles, 12 home runs, 143 RBIs and 20 stolen bases in 528 games. His best season came in 2003, his first full season in the major leagues. He hit .286 with a .755 OPS, 27 doubles, seven home runs, 58 RBIs and seven stolen bases that year.
In addition to his time in the MLB, Burroughs also had a distinguished youth sports career. He was part of the Long Beach, California, team that won back-to-back Little League World Series championships in 1992 and 1993.
In the 1993 Little League World Series, Burroughs pitched consecutive no-hitters, recording 16 strikeouts and batting .600.
“Sean was a legend in the LLBL and the baseball community,” said Long Beach Little League President Doug Wittman. wrote on social media“Although he left (Long Beach) to play for several MLB clubs, he returned to his home fields at Stearns Champions Park to coach his son.
“I’ve had the privilege of coaching with Sean for the past two years and he always had a fun, friendly attitude that drew kids in, a wealth of baseball knowledge that could get any kid out of a hitting rut, and a humility worth emulating. To say this is a huge loss is an understatement.”
Little League International took note of Burroughs’ death on their website In May.
Burroughs also won a gold medal with Team USA at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia.
“We at USA Baseball are heartbroken by the news of Sean’s tragic passing,” said USA Baseball CEO and Executive Director Paul Seiler. said in a statement“Sean was part of one of our most beloved teams and represented our country on and off the field in an excellent manner. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Burroughs family during this time.”
Burroughs was the son of Jeff Burroughs, a 16-year-old major league player who was the number one pick in the 1969 MLB Draft by the Washington Senators and won the American League Most Valuable Player Award in 1974 with the Texas Rangers.