A former Major League Baseball pitcher was found guilty of murdering his father-in-law in the offense prosecutors called financially motivated.
Daniel Serafini, 51, was convicted in the death of 70-year-old Robert Gary Spohr in 2021.
According to evidence presented at the trial, Serafini entered the Spohrs house on June 5, 2021, and security footage captured a hooded figure, arriving three hours before anyone called 911.
Brian Bahr/Allsport by Getty Images, File – Photo: In archived photos of March 1, 1999, Minnesota Twins pitcher Dan Serafini poses for cameras during spring training during spring training at Lee County Sports Complex in Fort Myers, Florida.
Prosecutors said Serafini secretly waited in the house with a .22-caliber gun and then attacked. In the shooting, two young children, age 3 and 8 months old, were at home.
Wood survived the initial attack but later died in 2023 due to suicide, and her family said the trauma of the shooting caused her death.
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The case centers on a $1.3 million dispute, in terms of ranch renovation projects. According to KXTV, a Sacramento affiliate of ABC News, the text message showed Serafini wrote “I want to kill them” in a message that mentioned $21,000. The victim donated $90,000 to Serafini’s wife on the day of the shooting.
Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office – Photo: Danny Serafini is shown in this booking photo posted by the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office.
Serafini’s baseball career included the selection of six different teams in the first round in 1992 by the Minnesota Twins.
The second defendant, Samantha Scott, 33, is described as a close friend of Serafini’s wife and his lover, who pleaded guilty in February 2025.
Adrienne Spohr, one of the victim’s daughters, told KXTV: “It’s an outrageous crime,” noting that her parents were “very generous” to Serafini and his wife.
Serafini will continue to be released on bail until he is scheduled to be sentenced on August 18, and he may face prison.
