Sean Burroughs, Former MLB, Little League World Series Player and Olympic Champion, Dies at 43

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Sean Burroughs, a two-time Little League World Series champion who won an Olympic gold medal and went on to a major league career that was cut short by substance abuse, has died. He was 43 years old.

The Los Angeles County coroner’s online records said Burroughs died Thursday, with the cause of death deferred.

USA Today, citing unnamed sources, reported that Burroughs died at Stearns Champions Park in Long Beach, California, where he grew up.

The Long Beach Fire Department responded to the park shortly after 5 p.m. following a report of a person in full cardiac arrest in the parking lot. “We took all of our life-saving measures but were unsuccessful,” public information officer Brian Fisk said Friday, adding that the person was pronounced dead at the scene.

“It is with a heavy heart that I write this message to inform you that yesterday afternoon one of our coaches, Sean Burroughs, tragically passed away,” wrote Doug Wittman, president of the Long Beach Little League, in a statement posted to social media on Friday. .

Wittman has trained with Burroughs the past two years.

“He always came with a fun, friendly attitude that appealed to kids, a wealth of baseball knowledge that could get any kid out of a hitting rut, and a humility worth emulating,” the statement said. “To say this is a huge loss is an understatement.”

Burroughs excelled as a pitcher in the Little League World Series for the Long Beach team, which became the first U.S. team to win back-to-back titles. They won the 1992 championship after the Philippines, their title round opponents, had to withdraw due to using aged players.

He threw consecutive no-hitters in the 1993 LLWS – with a record 16 strikeouts – and his team won the title over Panama, 3-2.

“Sean was a legend in the LBLL and the baseball community,” Wittman wrote.

Burroughs won a gold medal with the U.S. baseball team coached by Tommy Lasorda at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

“We at USA Baseball are heartbroken to learn of Sean’s tragic passing,” USA Baseball executive director and CEO 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 a first-class manner.”

Burroughs’ father, Jeff, was a three-time All-Star and the 1974 American League MVP with the Texas Rangers. He coached his son in Little League World Series appearances. Sean was born in Atlanta when his father played for the Braves.

Sean Burroughs committed to play baseball at the University of Southern California, but the San Diego Padres selected him with the ninth pick in the first round of the 1998 MLB draft and he signed with them.

He was a career .278 hitter with 12 home runs and 143 RBIs with the Padres, Tampa Bay, Arizona and Minnesota.

He was named the Most Valuable Player of the 2002 All-Star Futures Game.

Burroughs reached the majors as a third baseman in April 2002 with the Padres. He hit a game-winning single in the first game played at San Diego’s Petco Park that year.

After the 2005 season, the Padres traded Burroughs to Tampa Bay, but he saw limited playing time before being optioned to the minors and designated for assignment.

In December 2006, Burroughs signed a minor league contract with the Seattle Mariners, but was released less than halfway through the season.

Burroughs was out of baseball for four years as he struggled with substance abuse issues that “took away my aspirations and my dreams,” he told the St. Paul Pioneer Press in 2012.

In November 2010, Burroughs signed a minor league contract with Arizona. The following spring he joined the Diamondbacks and hit .261, but was outclassed by the minors. After third baseman Melvin Mora was released, Burroughs was promoted back to Arizona in July and returned to the starting lineup.

Burroughs became a free agent that fall and signed a minor league contract with Minnesota in December. He arrived at the major league club in spring training but was released in May.

From 2013 to 2017, he played for several independent minor league teams.

He appeared as an extra on the TV shows “Knots Landing” and “Saved by the Bell,” as well as the film “Terminator 2: Judgment Day.”

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