House of Nails: A Memoir of Life on the Edge

In one of the wildest and most entertaining sports memoirs that will ever be published, legendary center fielder Lenny Dykstra offers a no-holds-barred account of his larger-than-life journey, a Shakespearian tale of highs and lows spanning his years with the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies, through his headline-filled post-baseball career.

Nicknamed “Nails” for his toughness and grit, Lenny Dykstra approached the game of baseball (and his after-hours activities) with mythic intensity. In his decade in the majors (1985-1996), he was named to three All-Star teams and played in two of the most memorable World Series of the modern era: winning the championship with the iconic 1986 New York Mets, and playing a starring role in the 1993 World Series with the Philadelphia Phillies, a Fall Classic that inspired Roger Angell to write, “This series will linger in mind not just for its immoderate events but for its panoply of featured players and character actors . . . a double touring company seemingly assembled by Hogarth or Fellini.”

Known for his clutch hits, high on-base percentage, and aggressive defense, Lenny was later identified as the prototypical “Moneyball” player by his former minor league roommate Billy Beane. Tobacco-stained, steroid-powered, and booze-and-drug-fueled, Nails also defined ’80s and early ’90s baseball’s culture of excess.

Then came a second act no novelist could plausibly conjure. He threw his energies into several lucrative businesses, was touted as an investment guru by Jim Cramer, and launched a magazine for professional athletes. The New Yorker ran a 5,000-word profile under the headline: “baseball’s most improbable post-career success story.” But when the real estate bubble burst, Lenny lost everything, eventually serving two and a half years in prison for bankruptcy fraud. Now, he’s ready to tell all.

An epic tale of winning big and losing it all, Lennyball is the eagerly anticipated first-hand account of a most remarkable American life.