Wife of Angels Pitcher Tyler Skaggs Gives Tribute at Memorial: 'You Showed Me What Real Love Is'
The wife of 27-year-old Los Angeles Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs gave an emotional tribute to her sweetheart three weeks after he was found dead in his hotel room in Texas during a trip to play the Rangers.
During Tyler’s funeral in Santa Monica on July 22, his wife, Carli Skaggs, reminisced about the love the two shared during their years-long relationship.
“I made a last-minute decision to speak. I didn’t think I’d be able to,” Carli said in a video from the service posted by the MLB. “But, Tyler has given me some strength today.”
As she gave her remarks, Carli stood next to a red and white flower arrangement designed in the shape of Tyler’s No. 45 Angels’ jersey number.
“Tyler, my most handsome husband and love of my life,” she continued. “You showed me what real love is, and, as badly as I’m hurting, I consider myself blessed to have been loved by you.”
According to Tyler’s social media posts, Skaggs asked Carli to marry him in Bora Bora in November 2017. The two exchanged vows in December of last year.
“When I look back at our life together, I have no regrets. We said ‘I love you’ every hour. We never missed an opportunity to say how fortunate we are to have found our true love,” Carli said while fighting back tears.
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“Six years later, we never got tired of being together and looked forward to those sacred off days. I’m grateful we never took our love for granted. Always showing the utmost respect for each other,” she continued.
“You fell in love with a girl wearing sweatpants and no makeup, and in these moments, would tell me how beautiful I am. Yet I’m the one who couldn’t take my eyes off of you. “
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Before closing her statement, Carli called Tyler her “best friend.”
“You are my forever soulmate, lover, confidant, and best friend. You are my rock and I know you are by my side helping me to move forward one step at a time,” Carli said. “I will love you until my last breath, until we are together again.”
Tyler was found dead on July 1 in a Southlake, Texas, hotel room, just two days after he pitched for the team at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. The Angels were in Texas for a four-game series against the Rangers.
“The Southlake Police Department responded to a call of an unconscious male in a room in the Hilton Hotel,” authorities confirmed in a statement. “Officers arrived and found the male unresponsive and he was pronounced deceased at the scene. At this time, no foul play is suspected. This investigation is ongoing.”
Skaggs’ cause of death has yet to be revealed.
