Former MLB Third Baseman Sean Burroughs, 43, Dies While Coaching Little League

Patrick Andres | May 10, 2024

Jun. 1, 2011; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks infielder Sean Burroughs. / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Sean Burroughs, a former third baseman for four MLB teams, died Thursday afternoon. He was 43.

Per Bob Nightengale of USA Today, Burroughs died while coaching his son's Little League team in Long Beach, Calif.

"It is with a heavy heart that I am writing to inform you that yesterday afternoon one of our coaches, Sean Burroughs, tragically passed away," Long Beach's Little League wrote on Instagram in a statement. "We will have his family in our thoughts and prayers during this time."

Burroughs spent the majority of his career with the San Diego Padres, playing for the team that drafted him ninth overall from 2002 to '05. After an eight-game stint with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 2006, Burroughs spent years out of baseball before a comeback in 2011.

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In that 2011 season, he played in 78 games for an Arizona Diamondbacks team that won the NL West while speaking candidly about his battles with addiction while away from the game. He spent 10 games with the Minnesota Twins in 2012, the final games of his MLB career.

Before arriving in MLB, Burroughs won the Little League World Series twice in 1992 and 1993 and an Olympic gold medal in Sydney in 2000.