Former Major League pitcher Dan Serafini was sentenced Friday to life in prison without parole for shooting his wife’s parents during a 2021 burglary at their home near Lake Tahoe.
Serafini, 52, was convicted in July of first-degree murder of his father-in-law, Gary Spohr, attempted murder of his mother-in-law, Wendy Wood, and first-degree burglary. Spohr was killed and Wood survived, although she died a year after the shooting.
A native of San Francisco, Serafini was drafted by the Twins in 1992. In addition to Minnesota, the left-handed pitcher played for the Cubs, Padres, Pirates, Reds and Rockies in his eleven-year career.
Placer County District Attorney Morgan Gire said in a statement Friday that Spohr and Wood were loving grandparents and that Serafini’s crimes had a profound impact on family members and friends.
“The impact of this attack extends far beyond the immediate victims, deeply impacts family members and the broader community and highlights the lasting damage caused by intentional violence,” Gire said.
During his sentencing hearing in Auburn, Serafini addressed the court and maintained his innocence, according to MyNews4 and KCRA 3. He said he was partying with his wife the night of the shooting and described himself as a “broken, imperfect man who makes mistakes.”
During the sentencing, Judge Garen Horst read victim impact statements and the court heard from Adrienne Spohr, Spohr and Wood’s daughter.
“He thought he was getting away with murder,” Adrienne Spohr said, according to KCRA 3’s Michelle Bandur. “He thought he was going to cash in on my parents’ estate with his wife in the months that followed. He was happy as my father lay deceased and my mother lay bleeding on the couch, clinging to life.”
https://nypost.com/2025/07/15/sports/dan-serafini-former-mlb-pitcher-convicted-of-murdering-father-in-law-in-1-3-million-feud/ Placer County Sheriff
She asked Serafini to be placed in solitary confinement because she feared someone would kill her, Bandur said.
“He is a monster who knows no moral boundaries and has no reservations about taking lives for his own sake,” Adrienne Spohr said Friday. “Finally, I want the court to remember who my parents were, not just what happened to them. They were adventurous people who loved their community.”
Serafini criticized the legal system.
“Justice is fragile. I am just a man,” he said, according to Bandur. “I am far from perfect, but I am not a murderer. We live in a society lacking compassion and empathy. A society that unfortunately thrives on hearing the misfortunes of others. I sit before you today, a broken man, humiliated, ashamed, angry and sad. But I am not a murderer. I am a survivor, and I am not a murderer.”
He also said he “was exposed to cross-examination about my character, but I was never questioned about my innocence in this court.”
The case involved a second defendant: Samantha Scott, who pleaded guilty to an additional charge in February 2025according to ABC10.com.
Scott was described as a close friend of Serafini’s wife and his lover, according to ABC10.com. and Nevada police arrested the pair in separate cities in October 2023.
According to the Placer County District Attorney’s Office, Serafini will serve his sentence at the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
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