Maury Ornest

Maury Ornest

• Bats Both, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 195 lb.

• School University of California, Santa Barbara, Central Arizona College
• High School Beverly Hills High School

• Born March 4, 1960 in Vancouver, BC Canada
• Died July 31, 2018

BR Register page

Biographical Information

Maury Ornest played in the minors and for Team Canada.

Ornest was the son of Vancouver Canadians owner Harry Ornest (who later owned the NHL's St. Louis Blues) and the brother of Michael Ornest. He was picked by the Oakland A's in the 15th round of the 1977 amateur draft and the Milwaukee Brewers in the secondary phase of the January 1978 amateur draft. He was 0 for 12 with 3 walks and 3 runs for Canada in the 1978 Amateur World Series, splitting right field with Michael Labossiere and Gary Picone and backing up Dale Tilleman at 1B. He had 13 chances error-free. The 18-year-old was the team's youngest player, over a year younger than Ken Wiebe. He played for Canada in the 1979 Pan American Games. He hit .363 in college. The Brewers chose him in the 3rd round of the 1980 amateur draft.

He hit .322/.456/.507 with 36 runs in 46 games for the 1980 Butte Copper Kings, fielding only .844 at 3B, which he shared with Randy Ready (who saw more action at SS). He slumped to .236/.321/.374 for the Stockton Ports, stealing 15 bases in 24 tries. He fielded .943 in the outfield and had ten outfield assists. He split 1982 between Stockton (.185/.306/.266 in 61 G) and the Beloit Brewers (.257/.358/.421 in 46 G), swiping 19 bases while being caught 8 times. He drew 56 walks in 107 games. In 248 career games as a pro, he had batted .244/.350/.382 with 132 walks, 124 runs, 9 triples, 105 RBI and 40 steals in 58 tries.

After baseball, he struggled with mental illness. He became a self-taught artist; at the time of his death, he had left over 1,000 paintings, which were displayed in several showings.