Despite protests from a ritzy Costa Rica hotel, it does appear that something in the air there was responsible for a death that has rocked the MLB fraternity.
Brett Gardner, who played his entire 14-year career for the storied New York Yankees, was dealt an unthinkable tragedy when his teenage son suddenly died on a family trip.
“Miller Gardner died on March 21 while staying with his family at a hotel on the Manuel Antonio beach in Costa Rica’s Central Pacific,” according to the Associated Press.
Gardner was 14 years old.
The investigation first looked into whether or not Miller Gardner may have asphyxiated, or whether or not a bout of food poisoning the family experienced the night before had anything to do with it.
Neither trail yielded anything of note.
However, officials now appear to have pinpointed the cause of death, which was carbon monoxide poisoning, according to the New York Times.
The outlet added: “A toxicology report after his death found high levels of carboxyhemoglobin, an indicator of carbon monoxide in the blood, according to a statement from Randall Zúñiga, the director of the Costa Rica Judicial Investigation Agency.
“Miller Gardner’s test showed a saturation of 64 percent, he said, adding that anything over 50 percent was lethal.”
Zúñiga added that other tests were performed, such as for drugs, and they all came back negative.
He also noted that the case should effectively be closed.
Prior to today’s game, we held a moment of silence to remember Miller Gardner, the son of former Yankees outfielder Brett Gardner.
Miller had a spark in his eyes, an outgoing and feisty personality, and a warm and loving nature. Miller grew up in the Yankees organization and had… pic.twitter.com/rKrvvSWNju
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) March 27, 2025
On Tuesday, a representative for Arenas Del Mar Beachfront & Rainforest Resort — the Costa Rican hotel in question — had refuted early leaked reports that Miller Gardner died due to carbon monoxide poisoning.
“We understand the concern has grown and to clarify the high levels of carbon monoxide were in a mechanical room that guests do not occupy. The levels in the hotel room were non-existent and non-lethal. There was an error in this initial reporting,” hotel representative Dana Cohen told People magazine. “As mentioned, we await for conclusive results to confirm the cause of this unfortunate death.”
The statement appeared to be in response to this from Zúñiga in a March 30 video: “At that time, high levels of carbon monoxide contamination were detected in that room. Which then leads us to a line of investigation in which it appears that this person may have died from inhaling these very dangerous gases.”
Statement from Brett and Jessica Gardner:
With heavy hearts we are saddened to announce the passing of our youngest son, Miller. He was 14 years old and has left us far too soon after falling ill along with several other family members while on vacation. We have so many… pic.twitter.com/lBCBVmKGUe
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) March 23, 2025
The resort had not responded to these new, more conclusive toxicology results, as of this publication.
Miller Gardner died peacefully in his sleep, according to his family.
He “loved football, baseball, golf, hunting, fishing, his family and his friends.”
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