Sean Burroughs, a former MLB infielder and Little League World Series star, passed away due to fentanyl intoxication in May, as disclosed by the Los Angeles County medical examiner.
Burroughs, 43, collapsed in a Long Beach, California, baseball field parking lot after dropping off his son, Knox, for a Little League game. Despite CPR attempts, he was pronounced dead at the scene.
A notable figure in baseball, Burroughs was drafted ninth overall by the San Diego Padres in 1998. He played with the Padres for four seasons, followed by stints with the Tampa Bay Rays, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Minnesota Twins.
Following a hiatus due to struggles with drug addiction and alcoholism after 2005, Burroughs returned to baseball in 2011 with an opportunity from the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Throughout his career, Burroughs achieved a .278 batting average with a .690 OPS, 68 doubles, 12 home runs, 143 RBI, and 20 stolen bases across 528 games. His standout season was in 2003, where he batted .286 with a .755 OPS, 27 doubles, seven home runs, 58 RBI, and seven stolen bases.
Aside from his MLB career, Burroughs made headlines in his youth sports career. He notably pitched consecutive no-hitters and batted .600 for the Long Beach team that secured back-to-back Little League World Series championships in 1992 and 1993.
“Sean was a legend in LLBL and the baseball community,” Long Beach Little League president Doug Wittman wrote on social media. “While he left [Long Beach] to play for several clubs in the MLB, he returned to his home fields at Stearns Champions Park to coach his son.
“I have had the privilege of coaching with Sean for the past two years and he always came with a fun and friendly attitude the kids were drawn to, a wealth of baseball knowledge that could get any kid out of a batting rut and humility worth emulating. To say this is a huge loss is an understatement.”
Burroughs also represented Team USA, winning a gold medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia.
“We at USA Baseball are heartbroken to hear of the tragic passing of Sean,” USA Baseball executive director/CEO Paul Seiler said in a statement. “Sean was a part of one of our most beloved teams, and he represented our country on and off the field in a first-class manner. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Burroughs family during this time.”
He was the son of Jeff Burroughs, a prominent MLB player drafted first overall in 1969, who later won the American League MVP award in 1974 with the Texas Rangers.
