Pitcher Koosman to Plead Guilty to Tax Charges

Former baseball pitcher Jerry Koosman is expected to plead guilty later this month to charges stemming from his failure to file a tax return for 2002.

Koosman was criminally charged with failing to file a federal tax return on April 15 in a federal court in Madison, Wis. His lawyer, Robert Bernhoft, who represented Wesley Snipes last year in the actor’s high-profile tax fraud case, told Bloomberg.com that Koosman, 66, plans to plead guilty on May 22. He faces up to a year in jail and a fine of $25,000.

Koosman pitched for 19 years in the major leagues, between 1967 and 1985. The lefthander was first signed by the New York Mets and was the star pitcher of the “Miracle Mets” in their win over the Baltimore Orioles in the 1969 World Series. He later pitched for the Mets in the 1973 World Series, which they lost to the Oakland Athletics.

Koosman signed with the Minnesota Twins in 1978, and later played for the Toronto Blue Jays, the Chicago White Sox and the Philadelphia Phillies. He was inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame in 1989.

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