Last updated at 9:44 PM on 22nd July 2011
A former baseball hopeful has died after being bitten 19 times by a black widow spider.
Jeff Seale, 40, from Erie, Colorado noticed the bites on his foot two weeks ago, but only complained of feeling ill shortly before he died on Sunday.
Speaking to Fox News, his sister Stephanie Baum said Mr Seale worked at a horse stable and speculated he may have picked up the spider there.
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Bitten: Jeff Seale died after being bitten by a black widow spider
Speaking to Fox News Denver, Mrs Baum said: 'I think it's definitely related.
The black widow, or Latrodectus, gets its name from the insect's gruesome mating ritual - females often eat the males after the act.
Despite having an extremely venomous bite, the poison rarely kills humans.
But due to their small size and worldwide distribution, the species kills more than any other spider globally - with around seven people a year dying in the U.S. from black widow bites.
'He was in really good health up until that point [that he died].'
'He worked at a horse stable in the evenings, and he very well could have brought one of the spiders home in his things, or picked up some stuff from one of the horse sheds and brought one of the things home.'
The station reported the former high-school baseball star 'became obsessed' with the spiders after being bitten, even resorting to having his house gassed to try and eliminate the insects.
According to Boulder County Coroner's Office it could be 4 to 6 weeks before an official cause of death is announced.
According to health experts death from black widow bites is rare.
In his home town, Mr Seale is well known among students on the Fairview High School baseball team.
Pain: Mr Seale died two weeks after being bitten
Deadly: The black widow kills around seven people a year in the U.S.
Speaking to the station, Brian Sture a graduating senior said: 'When you assess that type of tradition, you definitely look up to him.'
Seale was a real baseball prospect, playing for the University of Texas before being drafted by the Mets.
According to dailycamera.com, the local community has already planned a series of tribute baseball games to honour Mr Seale.
Organisers of the Legion A State Tournament On Thursday plan to speeches and a minute's silence during the opening ceremony.
Mr Seale`s nephew Chase Baum will then throw out the first pitch.
There will also be a memorial service on Tuesday at First Presbyterian Church in Boulder.
