5 MLB players to testify that Eric Kay supplied them with drugs

[Stradling]

57 minutes ago, jsnpritchett said:

Pretty sure Kay's family claimed they reached out to Mead, not that Skaggs' family did (unless something about Skaggs' family doing something similar came out in earlier stories I'm not aware of).

I know you said you know of a time where this happened in Hollywood, but I still have a hard time believing his family reached out to his boss to tell his boss that he was supplying drugs to players.  

[Stradling]

All it takes is a text message, which is how a ton of communication happens these days.  So if the family has a text message to Tim Mead saying something to the effect of, “Hey Tim, I was hoping to talk to you about Eric and some drug issues in the clubhouse” then that is confirmation.  If it is a phone call, then it is their word against Tim Mead’s and quite frankly I would believe Mead.

[Inside Pitch]

1 hour ago, Blarg said:

Their claim is they told Mead that Kay was dealing so the only way they knew this was Skaggs involvement.  So far they didn't admit to having an intervention with their cash cow so it seems they have no real claim by allowing his drug abuse to continue under their roof. 

Sorry, I meant the Skaggs family..  I wasn't clear on that. 

[ettin]

Tim Mead has always acted as a stand up guy towards the site and myself. I will give him every benefit of the doubt in this matter, until/if proven otherwise.

[T.G.]

At this point, if any really damning news comes out about anyone within the Angels organization, I won't be surprised.  I say that because most of us, if not all of us - really don't know any of these people.  Stuff often comes to the surface that we never saw coming...

I do wonder how Kay was able to hold on to his job for so long - given the information we know about him ODing and going to rehab, etc.

[bruin5]

5 minutes ago, True Grich said:

At this point, if any really damning news comes out about anyone within the Angels organization, I won't be surprised.  I say that because most of us, if not all of us - really don't know any of these people.  Stuff often comes to the surface that we never saw coming...

I do wonder how Kay was able to hold on to his job for so long - given the information we know about him ODing and going to rehab, etc.

Tim Mead.  

[Stradling]

4 minutes ago, True Grich said:

At this point, if any really damning news comes out about anyone within the Angels organization, I won't be surprised.  I say that because most of us, if not all of us - really don't know any of these people.  Stuff often comes to the surface that we never saw coming...

I do wonder how Kay was able to hold on to his job for so long - given the information we know about him ODing and going to rehab, etc.

Well IF we are to treat drug addiction as an illness then we probably shouldn’t fire someone if it was his first offense.  And my guess is, and once again I am probably being naive, he OD’d prior to the team knowing he was distributing drugs to Skaggs and possibly others.  

[Stradling]

1 minute ago, bruin5 said:

Tim Mead.  

What about him? 

[T.G.]

Just now, Hells Rainbow said:

Well IF we are to treat drug addiction as an illness then we probably shouldn’t fire someone if it was his first offense.  And my guess is, and once again I am probably being naive, he OD’d prior to the team knowing he was distributing drugs to Skaggs and possibly others.  

I'm guessing there must have been other things that occurred that would make him a questionable employee.  Pure speculation on my part - but I would think the fact that he OD'd, etc. was just the tip of the iceberg. 

[bruin5]

2 minutes ago, Hells Rainbow said:

What about him? 

It was a response to TrueGrich who said:

”I do wonder how Kay was able to hold on to his job for so long - given the information we know about him ODing and going to rehab, etc.”

Tim Mead was his direct supervisor and good friend he should have known about his issues.  IF Skaggs family contacted someone in the Angels it would have been Mead. 

The family probably knew Mead better than they did any Angels executive. 

Mead is described by everyone as a really good guy, would do anything you needed.  Basically, someone who likes to please.  Unfortunately, those types tend not to make the best leaders. 

[Stradling]

29 minutes ago, bruin5 said:

It was a response to TrueGrich who said:

”I do wonder how Kay was able to hold on to his job for so long - given the information we know about him ODing and going to rehab, etc.”

Tim Mead was his direct supervisor and good friend he should have known about his issues.  IF Skaggs family contacted someone in the Angels it would have been Mead. 

The family probably knew Mead better than they did any Angels executive. 

Mead is described by everyone as a really good guy, would do anything you needed.  Basically, someone who likes to please.  Unfortunately, those types tend not to make the best leaders. 

How do we know he was his good friend?  Also if you want to do a deep dive on leadership I’d be happy to have that conversation with you.

[bruin5]

6 minutes ago, Hells Rainbow said:

How do we know he was his good friend?  Also if you want to do a deep dive on leadership I’d be happy to have that conversation with you.

At this point, let’s let it play out. 

[bruin5]

11 minutes ago, Hells Rainbow said:

How do we know he was his good friend?  Also if you want to do a deep dive on leadership I’d be happy to have that conversation with you.

I changed my mind.  Here you go:  https://larrybrownsports.com/baseball/eric-kay-angels-tim-mead-skaggs-drug-use/518497

[jsnpritchett]

16 minutes ago, Hells Rainbow said:

How do we know he was his good friend?  Also if you want to do a deep dive on leadership I’d be happy to have that conversation with you.

 

5 minutes ago, bruin5 said:

I changed my mind.  Here you go:  https://larrybrownsports.com/baseball/eric-kay-angels-tim-mead-skaggs-drug-use/518497

"Kay alleged that he first told Mead about Skaggs’ drug use in 2017. Kay’s mother, Sandy, told ESPN that she saw texts sent by her son to Mead stating that the organization needed to get Skaggs “off his back.”

Mead denied that he had any knowledge of Skaggs’ drug use when contacted by ESPN."

[Stradling]

1 minute ago, jsnpritchett said:

 

"Kay alleged that he first told Mead about Skaggs’ drug use in 2017. Kay’s mother, Sandy, told ESPN that she saw texts sent by her son to Mead stating that the organization needed to get Skaggs “off his back.”

Mead denied that he had any knowledge of Skaggs’ drug use when contacted by ESPN."

Ok.  Once again, I’ll trust the guy known for integrity versus the guy known as an addict.  I will happily admit I am wrong if it’s proven that Mead is lying.  

[jsnpritchett]

2 minutes ago, Hells Rainbow said:

Ok.  Once again, I’ll trust the guy known for integrity versus the guy known as an addict.  I will happily admit I am wrong if it’s proven that Mead is lying.  

Sure, that's fine.  But it does seem pretty clear that they were close--or, at the very least, that Kay treated the relationship as something more than professional.

[Stradling]

Just now, jsnpritchett said:

Sure, that's fine.  But it does seem pretty clear that they were close--or, at the very least, that Kay treated the relationship as something more than professional.

Yea I can see that, but it doesn’t prevent accountability which is what bruin5 was claiming. 

[tdawg87]

4 minutes ago, jsnpritchett said:

Sure, that's fine.  But it does seem pretty clear that they were close--or, at the very least, that Kay treated the relationship as something more than professional.

Gross.

[bruin5]

6 minutes ago, Hells Rainbow said:

Yea I can see that, but it doesn’t prevent accountability which is what bruin5 was claiming. 

Why not?  I’ve seen A LOT of cases where the leader liked the person with the issue, didn’t want them to lose their job, and tried to help them through counseling, etc but never reported it to anyone above them.  

Not saying that’s what happened, but it’s definitely possible. 

[Stradling]

3 minutes ago, bruin5 said:

Why not?  I’ve seen A LOT of cases where the leader liked the person with the issue, didn’t want them to lose their job, and tried to help them through counseling, etc but never reported it to anyone above them.  

Not saying that’s what happened, but it’s definitely possible. 

Ok and how many of those people that didn’t hold others accountable ascended to the position of VP? 

[bruin5]

25 minutes ago, Hells Rainbow said:

Ok and how many of those people that didn’t hold others accountable ascended to the position of VP? 

Mead spent, what, 40 plus years with the Angels?  Small organization, moved his way up.  Got his last position because he was really good at PR, approachable, friendly, etc.   Not because he was a great leader.  

And, people at the VP level and above tended to be the worst offenders because they had little to no fear of negative repercussions.  How much crap do you think gets covered up at those levels in many organizations? 

I do find it possible that the Skaggs family reached out to him. If they did, it’s likely that Mead let HR or Carpino know. He had to at that point and that’s the key.  If this went up to Carpino and Arte, and they did nothing, MLB has a MAJOR problem on it’s hands.  Of course, it will all have to be proven. 

[Slegnaac]

36 minutes ago, bruin5 said:

Mead spent, what, 40 plus years with the Angels?  Small organization, moved his way up.  Got his last position because he was really good at PR, approachable, friendly, etc.   Not because he was a great leader.  

And, people at the VP level and above tended to be the worst offenders because they had little to no fear of negative repercussions.  How much crap do you think gets covered up at those levels in many organizations? 

I do find it possible that the Skaggs family reached out to him. If they did, it’s likely that Mead let HR or Carpino know. He had to at that point and that’s the key.  If this went up to Carpino and Arte, and they did nothing, MLB has a MAJOR problem on it’s hands.  Of course, it will all have to be proven. 

You work in the Angels HR department?

[bruin5]

16 minutes ago, Slegnaac said:

You work in the Angels HR department?

No, I did more speculating than fact.  Not fair to Mead, especially given that  plaudits he’s gotten over his career.  That doesn’t mean he may not have made a mistake here.  

 

[Stradling]

1 hour ago, bruin5 said:

No, I did more speculating than fact.  Not fair to Mead, especially given that  plaudits he’s gotten over his career.  That doesn’t mean he may not have made a mistake here.  

 

Nor does it mean he made a mistake or didn’t earn his promotion. Nor does it mean he isn’t capable of accountability.  You assumed a bunch. 

[Jay]