Ex-MLB star Lenny Dykstra says he spent $500,000 to hire private investigators to spy on MLB umpires and used their secrets -- including affairs and gay sex -- as leverage to get calls during games.
Dykstra just spilled his guts on "The Herd" with Colin Cowherd on FS1 ... saying he would essentially threaten the umpires to go public with the information unless he got favorable calls.
"Their blood's just as red as ours," Dykstra said ... "Some of them like women, some of them like men, some of them gamble ... some of them do whatever."
Dykstra says the strategy was effective -- with umpires often shrinking the strike zone for him when he was at bat in the early '90s.
"Its wasn't a coincidence that I led the league in walks the next few years, was it?"
Dykstra did in fact lead the league in walks in 1993.
I've been suspicious of this sort of thing for a long time. Given the vast sums available to players and owners with net worth in the tens of millions or billions, the temptation to do this would be great. And we're talking about a system with hundreds of such people, many of whom are not well-suited to abiding by an honor system.
IOW, it's a crooked racket, probably from top to bottom.
IOW, it's a crooked racket, probably from top to bottom.
The 90s were the wild wild west in the MLB. But such practices go back in time as well. Pete Rose used to gamble for and against his team. That is why he is not in the Baseball HoF.
The 90s were the big era of PEDS before they became regulated.
The 80s saw an upsurge in cocaine use and "uppers". Before that of course alcohol ran large for MLB players on the road half the summer away from family. Take into account a good portion of MLB players are drafted out of HS.
Some of these 18, 19 year old draftees get a nice $5M or above signing bonus. So you basically have a recent HS grad who has $5m burning a hole in his pocket. Read the Josh Hamilton book sometime. He quickly got in the wrong crowd when in the minors. Was never a drinker in HS but when on his own for the first time started drinking, then drugs and prostitutes. An interesting story of how he got off the drugs and made a comeback to be MLB MVP. He has had a few relapses with alcohol in the past few years. So he reminds everyone "you never stop being an addict."
Sad state of affairs but we know where there is great amounts of money the tendency is to spend it on evil purposes.
"For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly."---Romans 5:6
