Former Kansas City Royals star Ben Zobrist says wife had affair with pastor: lawsuit
More than a year after he took a leave of absence from the Chicago Cubs to try to save his marriage, former Kansas City Royals star Ben Zobrist learned his wife, Julianna, was having an affair with the man acting as a pastoral counselor for the couple.
That’s according to a lawsuit filed by Zobrist against Byron Yawn, who at the time was senior pastor and elder at Community Bible Church in Nashville, Tennessee, according to court documents obtained by the Peoria Journal Star in Illinois.
Zobrist is seeking damages in the amount of $6 million from Yawn, who had provided counseling to the couple before and during their marriage, the suit says.
It wasn’t until June 3, 2020, that Zobrist learned of the affair “when his wife admitted for the first time in response to a set of written requests for admission in a divorce proceeding, that she and Byron Yawn had been engaged in a sexual relationship for several months and that she had lied about this to Mr. Zobrist,” the lawsuit states.
The Journal Star reported “Zobrist filed for divorce in May 2019 in Williamson County, Tenn., where he and his wife reside. Julianna Zobrist filed a counter-complaint in March 2020. Those cases are pending.“
The lawsuit also says Yawn defrauded Zobrist’s charity foundation, Patriot Forward. Yawn received a paid salary from Patriot Forward and used it as “an excuse to meet with” Julianna Zobrist.
The Journal Star says Yawn is no longer associated with the church.
This story was originally published June 22, 2021 at 7:12 AM.
