Maurice Lerner

Maurice Richard Lerner
(Pro; Reno)

• Bats Right; Throws Right
• Height 6' 2", Weight 185 lb.

• Born December 20, 1935 in Brookline, MA USA
• Died September 5, 2013 in Las Vegas, NV USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Infielder Maurice Lerner played minor league baseball form 1954 to 1963, peaking at AA. he was a good hitter, hitting over .300 a number of times in the low minors.

He turned to a life of crime towards the his baseball career. he was first arrested for larceny in his hometown of Brookline, MA in 1963 and was sentenced to three months' probation. It was the beginning of a long rap sheet. The end of his baseball career was allegedly prompted by a call from the Federal Bureau of Investigations to the President of the American League, Joe Cronin, who had him quietly placed on the suspended list. He later became a hit man and was linked to a number of murders. In 1970, he was convicted by a court in Providence, RI and was handed two life sentences. He served 18 years and was by all accounts a model inmate, although a tough man who inspired fear, then was released in 1988 when one of the witnesses at the original trial was convicted of perjury. He moved to Las Vegas, NV after being released, with his wife, who had stayed loyal to him all those years, and two children. He kept himself out of serious trouble in later years.

Further Reading

• Dan Barry: "The Big League Prospect Who Became a Mob Hit Man", The New York Times, October 24, 2016. [1]