Ron Darling Says He Stands By Claim in New Book That Lenny Dystrka Used Racial Slurs
Former Mets pitcher Ron Darling says he "stand[s] by" everything he wrote in his new book 108 Stitches: Loose Threads, Ripping Yarns, and the Darnest Characters from My Time in the Game, he announced in a statement on Thursday.
"The focus of today should be the Mets home opener, one of the team's greatest traditions," Darling said, per the New York Daily News's Kristie Ackert. "Even though my recently released book 108 Stitches has sparked some controversy, I stand by all recollections that were written, but I do regret that my former teammates have been approached for comment. Due to a legal threat, I have been advised not to make any further comments at this time."
Darling's statement comes after he was criticized for claiming in his book that his former teammate Lenny Dykstra shouted racial slurs at Red Sox pitcher Dennis "Oil Can" Boyd during the 1986 World Series.
In the book, Darling wrote that Dykstra "[was] shouting every imaginable and unimaginable insult and expletive in his [Boyd's] direction – foul, racist, hateful, hurtful stuff," while standing on the on-deck circle at Fenway Park in Boston.
Darling said on ESPN's Golic and Wingo there is "no chance that I misremembered" the alleged incident, adding that his former Mets teammates "have my back."
In an interview with The Michael Kay Show on Monday, Dykstra said he plans to sue Darling and his book's publisher. Boyd appeared on WFAN on Tuesday to address the allegations, saying, "This is all new to me."
Dykstra called into The Howard Stern Show on Wednesday to deny Darling's allegations.
"Ron Darling is lying with 100% certainty," he said. "When you’re in the on-deck circle leading off...a World Series game, you’re concentrating, man," Dykstra said. "You’re not screaming whatever the hell [Darling] says."
Mets legend Daryl Strawberry also said on TheMichael Kay Show this week that he "never heard Lenny say anything racist."
