AUBURN, Calif. — Retired MLB pitcher Daniel Serafini has been convicted of first-degree murder and attempted murder in the shootings of his wife’s parents at their home four years ago near Lake Tahoe in California.
A Placer County jury on Monday found Serafini guilty of killing his father-in-law, Gary Spohr, and severely wounding his mother-in-law, Wendy Wood, on June 5, 2021, at their home on the lake’s west shore.
Serafini, 51, also was convicted of first-degree burglary.
Serafini entered the Spohrs’ Lake Tahoe home June 5, 2021, where prosecutors said he secretly waited with a .22 caliber gun for several hours for the victims to return before ambushing them. Two children, ages 3 years and 8 months, were in the home at the time.
According to evidence presented at trial, when the Spohrs arrived, Serafini shot both of them in the head and fled the house. Wood survived and called 911. She died by suicide in 2023.
Two years later police arrested Serafini and his nanny-turned-lover, Samantha Scott, 33. Scott pleaded guilty in February to an accessory charge.
Serafini’s motive centered on a $1.3 million dispute over the renovation of a horse ranch, according to prosecutors. Serafini, prosecutors said, hated his in-laws and had written “I’m gonna kill them one day” in a text message mentioning $21,000, according to ABC News Sacramento affiliate KXTV. The victims had given $90,000 to Serafini’s wife, Erin, the day of the shootings.
During the trial, Serafini’s wife, Erin Spohr, testified that she and her husband had an open marriage and that she still supported him, KCRA reported. Spohr also acknowledged how her mother had wanted Serafini to sign a postnuptial agreement while she and her husband were having marital issues.
“It’s been four years since my mom and dad were shot, and it’s been four years of just hell,” Adrienne Spohr, the victims’ daughter and Serafini’s sister-in-law, said after the verdict.
Adrienne was heard gasping and crying along with others in the courtroom when the verdict was read aloud, according to KXTV. Serafini shook his head in disagreement.
The mandatory minimum for first-degree murder with a firearm enhancement is 25 years to life, but could increase to 35 years depending on how the charges are applied.
Cubs reliever Dan Serafini delivers against the Brewers on April 18, 1999, in Milwaukee. (Gary Dineen/AP)
The Minnesota Twins made Serafini their first-round draft pick in 1992 out of Junipero Serra High in San Mateo, Calif., the same school all-time home run king Barry Bonds attended. Serafini made his big-league debut in 1996 with the Twins and pitched in parts of seven seasons with the Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds and Colorado Rockies.
Serafini pitched in Japan from 2004-07 before returning to the U.S. He was suspended for 50 games in 2007 for using performance-enhancing drugs that he blamed on medication he took in Japan. He also pitched for Italy in the 2013 World Baseball Classic.
On June 28, 2015, Serafini’s bar in Sparks, Nev., was featured on an episode of Bar Rescue. The bar’s named was changed from The Bullpen Bar to The Oak Tavern as part of the makeover, but not before his financial woes were described as blowing through $14 million in career earnings and taking a $250,000 loan from his parents.
Serafini’s sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 18. He will remain in custody without bail until then.
Associated Press and New York Times contributed.
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Originally Published: July 16, 2025 at 4:00 PM CDT