EXCLUSIVE Experts unveil latest theories about horrific death of Yankees star Brett Gardners 14-year-old son... and a devastating warning

New York Yankees legend Brett Gardner awoke to every parents worst nightmare last week when he discovered his 14-year-old son Miller had died suddenly in his sleep.

Gardner, his wife, and their two sons were on vacation in Costa Rica, staying at the $1,000 per night Arenas Del Mar Beachfront & Rainforest Resort, in Manuel Antonio, when the tragedy unfolded on Friday.

The family had gone out for dinner at a nearby restaurant the night before and were sickened by suspected food poisoning, suffering severe stomach cramps, vomiting, and diarrhea.

Hotel staff summoned a medical team to the Gardners room on Thursday night and each was given medication to quell their symptoms.

Miller was dead within hours.

Authorities in Costa Rica are now desperately scrambling to determine what caused the boys death - and the investigation has already taken multiple twists and turns.

First, the nations Judicial Investigation Police (OIJ) said the teen had succumbed to asphyxiation due to intoxication related to food poisoning, likely due to suffocating on his vomit while asleep.

Then the OIJ announced there was no obstruction in his airway, sparking reports and speculation he may have suffered an allergic reaction to medication.

Gardner, his wife Jessica, and their other son, Hunter, 16, now face an agonizing wait of up to 90 days for results from his autopsy because a spike in brutal gang murders in Costa Rica has caused a backlog of cases. 

The parents are trying to get Millers body flown back to the United States for more tests, but until then they are left searching for an explanation.

Here the Daily Mail breaks down the unanswered questions from the investigation, and speaks to experts who have scrutinized the devastating sequence of events.

Miller Gardner (second right) died over the weekend, his parents Brett and Jessica announced on Sunday

The family was staying at the luxurious Arenas Del Mar Beachfront & Rainforest Resort

All four of the Gardner family (seen in 2013) came down with food poisoning and experienced severe stomach cramps, vomiting, and diarrhea, officials said

 Why Was Miller Medicated For Food Poisoning? 

In a statement to Daily Mail on Wednesday, an OIJ spokesperson shared that the Gardner family fell ill shortly after returning to the hotel on Thursday night and an external medical team was quickly summoned to assist them. 

The OIJ declined to comment on the severity of the familys symptoms and what medication they were supplied.

At the moment we cannot provide further details in order not to jeopardize the investigation, said the spokesperson.

The results of the Forensic Laboratories are awaited, in order to determine the possible cause of death.

Dr. Stuart Fischer, a New York-based physician, told Daily Mail that only under very extreme circumstances should a patient being treated for food poisoning be issued medication. 

Food poisoning typically occurs when someone consumes food contaminated with bacteria, molds, parasites, or other dangerous toxins.

Symptoms depend on the cause but usually include vomiting, diarrhea, stomach pain, and fever.

Fischer said it can be dangerous to supply food poisoning patients with medication, because the typical symptoms of the illness are the bodys natural way of expelling harmful toxins. 

Food poisoning is a very acute illness that passes quickly. Most people wont have to go to hospital or see a doctor for it, explained Fischer, author of The Little Book of Big Medical Emergencies.

Only in cases where persistent diarrhea and vomiting are happening would someone need a doctor, because serious problems with electrolyte imbalances and severe dehydration can occur, which would require medical attention.

Millers body is currently being held in the morgue at the judicial agencys forensic medical clinical section at San Joaquin de Floris, just outside San Jose

The entire Gardner family became ill the night before Miller was found dead, a new theory brought forward by the countrys medical experts is the 14-year-old may have had an adverse reaction to the medicine the resort doctor brought to their room to combat their symptoms 

The OIJ did not clarify how soon after returning to the hotel the Gardner family sought medical help. 

In the vast majority of food poisoning cases, Fischer said prescribing medication would be ill-advised.

He said: I dont recommend it at all. You have to leave the body alone.

For example, if you prescribe Imodium to stop diarrhea or Zofran to stop vomiting, what youre doing is shutting off the bodys own mechanism of purgation.

And for me, the best thing to do is let the human body get rid of everything in its stomach, dont trap it there. 

You have to let it get everything out of the intestines, and if you shut that off, you have a problem.  

Keeping it in there can be dangerous. 

 Did An Allergic Reaction Occur?

In America, Fischer says the most common medications used to treat the side effects of food poisoning are Imodium and Zofran.

In his 40 years of practicing medicine, he has not encountered anyone who suffered a severe allergic reaction to either drug. 

Something investigators shouldnt rule out as they investigate Millers cause of death is a food allergy, said Fischer. 

It is possible that the boy suffered an allergic reaction to a dish he ate, either in addition to, or instead of, food poisoning, he theorized. 

Allergies to foods like peanuts are incredibly common among Americans and foreign countries will not always explicitly display what ingredients their dishes and sauces contain. 

Fischer can envision a scenario where both food poisoning and a food allergy occurred prior to Millers death.

The signs and symptoms of food poisoning and an allergic reaction often look incredibly similar in autopsies, he added.

A food allergy could have also prompted a medical emergency. Just because its food poisoning, it doesnt mean an intense reaction couldnt have been caused by an allergic reaction, said Fischer.

If the person had red spots all over their body, for instance, which is a skin manifestation of an allergic reaction, then thats very easy to determine. 

But if its a closed airway with stridor [a wheezing sound that occurs when breathing with a narrowed or blocked airway] that would be an acute anaphylactic reaction. And you could see that in an autopsy, and there would be chemical changes in the blood that would reflect this.

Someone could have an allergic reaction, and it would sort of resemble food poisoning, because there are overlaps in the signs and the symptoms.

 How Long Will The Investigation Take?

In extreme cases of food poisoning, regardless of an allergic reaction, muscular paralysis can also occur, inhibiting a persons ability to breathe.

Food intoxication can cause death from infection itself, especially if the person has a weakened immune system.

Approximately 3,000 Americans die each year from foodborne illnesses, including infections and intoxications, according to the CDC. 

Most food poisoning deaths are caused by organ failure, dehydration, or neurotoxic effects. 

Fischer said sufferers of the worst kinds of food poisoning experience electrolyte abnormalities and severe, life-threatening hypotension, symptoms of which mimic cardiac arrest. 

Dr Stuart Fisher, based in New York, wrote about many of these diagnoses in his new book entitled, The Little Book of Big Medical Emergencies.

Brett and Jessica Gardner first announced their sons death over the weekend in a heartbreaking statement

As things stand, Fischer said its most likely that Miller suffered an allergic reaction to either his food or possibly any medication he was administered, noting that Millers other family members survived.

However, other possibilities cannot be ruled out this early into the investigation.

Fischer suggested that other than an underlying allergy, Miller couldve had a weaker immune system or different coping mechanisms or chemistry to other members of his family, which may have lessened his chances of survival.

He believes it could take months before the tragic mystery is solved. 

People are used to seeing on TV shows like CSI where a cause of death is solved within an hour, but in my experience, they take weeks and even months because each organ of the body has to be inspected, said Fischer.

Fischer continued that he is shocked officials in Costa Rica have been so quick to offer tentative explanations for the young Gardners death over the last few days.

People don’t have the diagnosis written on their body - the doctor has to be a detective in cases like these and piece together what happened, he said.

Adding to the Gardners familys wait for answers over Millers death is the fact that Costa Rica has a large backlog in death investigations caused by a chilling rise in homicides in the region. 

Speaking from his office in San Juan on Wednesday, Juan Pablo Alvarado Garcia of the OIJ told Daily Mail: Were having a hike in homicides as these drug gangs battle for territory and every one of them needs an autopsy.

Alvarado confirmed an autopsy has been carried out on Millers remains, but the full analysis and results are not expected to be returned for at least two to three months due to these constant killings causing a backlog of cases.

Thats the reality, he added. 

Costa Rica has had nearly 1,800 homicides in the past two years, nearly 17 for every 100,000 of the population.

Most murders were attributed to narco-trafficking groups, with one report claiming 63 percent of the killings were carried out by hitmen settling scores.

 What Are Police Saying Now?

Speaking on Wednesday, Alvarado told Daily Mail officials are conducting toxicology tests to determine if medicine couldve caused Millers death. 

He said his department is also probing the possibility that Miller brought an existing bacterial infection with him after traveling to the Pacific coast resort from the family home in Summerville, South Carolina. 

Juan Pablo Alvarado Garcia from Costa Ricas Judicial Investigations Agency said the autopsy results will likely be delayed because of the countrys high homicide rate from gang violence

There is no indication that drugs or alcohol played a role in the boys death, Alvarado added. 

There were also no signs of asphyxiation, despite initial claims made by OIJ.

Samples of food from where the Gardners dined on March 20 have been taken for analysis, the top cop shared. 

The restaurant where the family dined has not been revealed.

One restaurant in the local area has already issued a statement to distance itself from the tragedy, following mounting speculation. 

Le Papillon Restaurant at nearby Hotel La Mariposa said: We would like to clarify that the Gardner family dined at our restaurant [...] on the afternoon of Tuesday, March 18, 2025 – three days before Millers tragic passing. 

Any claims suggesting a link between our restaurant and this heartbreaking event are entirely false and unfounded. 

Le Papillon Restaurant at nearby Hotel La Mariposa bizarrely said they had nothing to do with the incident even though they hadnt been named as the family had dined there earlier 

The familys statement was posted to the New York Yankees official Facebook page confirming that their son had passed away on March 21

Miller was found dead in his room at the luxurious Arenas del Mar Beachfront and Rainforest Resort in Manuel Antonio on Friday morning after he and his family dined the previous evening at a nearby restaurant 

Millers body is currently being held in the morgue at the judicial agencys forensic medical clinical section at San Joaquin de Floris, just outside San Jose.

The family have not been able to pick the body up yet because they are still waiting for all the procedures required by the American embassy here, Alvarado told Daily Mail.

He said he did not know where the Gardners are staying.

Millers body can be repatriated to the United States at any time from the autopsy point of view. All the samples necessary for the results have been taken.

Of the mix-up with the early cause of death report, suggesting asphyxiation, he clarified: When our agents showed up at the scene they observed the body with vomit in the mouth and nasal passages.

So they provided a preliminary report saying it could have been asphyxiation due to the vomit.

We went with that version because the night before the family went to dine outside the hotel where they were staying and they all started to feel sick when they returned.

But once there was a deeper examination with the autopsy, the doctor did not find any abnormalities in the respiratory tract.

Now, we are focused on three areas as a possible cause of death: toxicology, neuropathology (nervous system diseases) and histology (the microscopic structure of tissues and organs).

 A Beloved Son Lost

Brett and Jessica Gardner first announced their sons death over the weekend in a heartbreaking statement.

With heavy hearts we are saddened to announce the passing of our youngest son, Miller, the statement read.

He was 14 years old and has left us far too soon after falling ill along with several other family members while on vacation.

They added: We have so many questions and so few answers at this point, but we do know that he passed away peacefully in his sleep on the morning of Friday, March 21st.

Miller was a beloved son and brother and we cannot yet comprehend our life without his infectious smile. He loved football, baseball, golf, hunting, fishing, his family and his friends. He lived life to the fullest every single day.

The $1,000-a-night Arenas Del Mar resort said in a statement: We are deeply saddened by this loss, and our hearts go out to the family during this incredibly difficult time.

The factors that led to this tragic incident are unknown, and we are fully cooperating with authorities as they investigate.

We remain committed to supporting our guests and staff, prioritizing their well-being and safety, while respecting the privacy of those affected.