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GQ paints unflattering portrait of Dykstra

CLEARWATER, Fla. - A story in the April issue of GQ magazine paints a damning portrait of Lenny Dykstra, the former Phillies star turned business man.

Former Phillie Lenny Dykstra began his post-baseball career with a chain of car washes in Southern California and later began his own investment firm and a financial magazine for pro athletes. (AP Photo)
Former Phillie Lenny Dykstra began his post-baseball career with a chain of car washes in Southern California and later began his own investment firm and a financial magazine for pro athletes. (AP Photo)Read more

CLEARWATER, Fla. - A story in the April issue of GQ magazine paints a damning portrait of Lenny Dykstra, the former Phillies star turned business man.

"Everything in there is a lie," Dykstra said by telephone Sunday night.

The story, titled "You Think Your Job Sucks? Try Working for Lenny Dykstra," is written by Kevin Coughlin, a former photo editor for Dykstra's magazine, The Players Club. Coughlin attributes racist and homophobic remarks to Dykstra.

The article, scheduled to be released on GQ.com at 9 a.m. this morning, portrays Dykstra's company as being in deep financial distress. It claims there are nearly a dozen lawsuits pending against Dykstra. The story includes Dykstra telling a worker to "get in line," after the worker threatened legal action for unpaid wages. Coughlin himself writes about not being compensated for work.

"I'm not going down in the dirt with this guy," Dykstra said. "He's [ticked] off because he got fired. He was masquerading as a photo editor.

'I'm spending 400-grand a month trying to help [professional athletes]. This is what I get for it? It's a sad thing. I don't get it. Why are people taking what he says to be the truth?"

Dykstra launched The Players Club (TPC) magazine a year ago. It is aimed toward professional athletes looking for ways to spend their money and contains advertisements for private jet services, luxury cars, expensive wrist watches and pricey cigars.

Dykstra disputed the GQ article's claim that his magazine project is nearly defunct.

"We're not out of business," he said. "We're kicking ass. We're on our 11th issue."

Coughlin is now a photo editor at the New York Post. In the GQ article, he writes of Dykstra using a racist term for African-American athletes who have appeared on the cover of TPC. Coughlin also writes of a time when Dykstra used a term that is considered offensive to refer to a gay page designer.

"What else can this guy say to hurt me?"' Dykstra said. "It's all lies."

"I lived with [Darryl] Strawberry and [Dwight] Gooden," he said, referring to his former New York Mets teammates, who are both black. "I'm not reducing myself to this. What a crazy thing."

Dykstra spent 12 seasons in the major leagues, including eight with the Phillies. He was a three-time All-Star with the Phils and finished second in National League MVP voting in 1993.