Lenny Dykstra on revelations from new book, steroid use & World Series title

Former MLB all-star centerfielder Lenny Dykstra joins Larry for a candid conversation about his career highs and lows, including that legendary 1986 World Series title and his famed steroid use. Dykstra also updates Larry on the status of his well-documented relationship with actor Charlie Sheen & weighs in on the current state of MLB baseball.

Dykstra has never been a fan of the middle. “I'm either flying in my own private plane or I'm in the cooler,” he confides. He leads Larry through the two extremes – from championships and millions to prison, bankruptcy, and a nasty drug addiction.

A meeting for a risky procedure with “Dr. God” inIsrael, the reason why his drug-fueled prime was actually more strategicthan today’s baseball, and much more is revealed in this must-see interview with Larry King.

QUOTES FROM THIS 'LARRY KING NOW' INTERVIEW WITH LENNY DYKSTRA:

*Posted Online on Ora.TV on JULY 27th 2016:

"I was asked by a lot of people to write my book before, and I was never really ready to put it all out there. And if you're going to write a book, especially about your life, you have to be willing and able to put it – all of it – the good, the bad, the ugly." – Lenny Dykstra on why he waited to write his memoir.

"So the last part of my life, I was in this hotel that the federal government owns – meaning prison – three meals a day, healthcare, but it was kind of constricting. So what happens in prison is you have a lot of time to think. And that's not good. Because what you do is you reflect on things you think you had all figured out, that you think you were doing okay, but maybe you weren't. And so when I got out – I didn't write the book right when I got out. I mean, I just got off probation. I waited three years." – Lenny Dykstra on writing his memoir after his release from prison.

"I didn't do like a lot of people like 'I found God, I'm great now.’ I mean like – I haven't found God! I'm looking. Like, where is he? I don't know how that works."

"Next season... I'm on the cover of 'Sports Illustrated,' hitting .400 in June, I make the All-Star team, and I lead the league in hits. Coincidence? I think not. And I told baseball about this too, because they make – look, any time money is involved, a lot of money, it makes you do things you might not do." – Lenny Dykstra on steroids leading to his peak performance.

"I don't. Because you know why? I wouldn't have been able to support my family the way I was able to if I didn't, because I wouldn't have been able to play. I mean 'cause the guy next to me, he's taking them, and I physically couldn't withstand the schedule to be an every day player. So when I say regret, I'm not proud of it. I'm not telling kids to do it. But I did what I had to do." – Lenny Dykstra on whether he regrets taking steroids.

"My gift was – my whole life was about getting out of the middle. Like I had one friend in high school. You know why? Because I had to have someone to catch with. I never went to a dance. I never went to a party. I was on a mission, okay? To get out of the middle. And baseball was my gift." – Lenny Dykstra on whether he could always hit.

"I like to win before the game starts or I don't play."

"For me, it's typical for my life. I'm either flying in my own private plane or I'm in the cooler, you know? There's no middle."

"I didn't lead the National League in hits for two years because I was the best hitter. Not at all. I lead because I knew the situations." – Lenny Dykstra on being a strategic player.

"I was a percentage player. I played the game off the scoreboard – the right way. Today they don't play the right way, and I have a problem with that... they're selfish."

"I watch baseball now and I feel like they have milk and cookies in the clubhouse. Like really? What's going on? They have to market their players better."

"We're still in the business of entertainment. I knew early on that I was in the business to put people in the seats. So what I would do when I was done playing, every night, I had my own little ritual where I'd go and sit in front of my locker for one minute by myself and say: 'If I were a fan, would I have paid money to watch me play tonight?' And that's how I would judge myself."

"I would see my teammates drinking eighteen beers after a game to get their pain away. And I'm a leadoff hitter and I couldn't. So I said to the trainer, 'Hey, can't you give me something?' So he gave me one pill! One Vicodin, one drink – I felt great, man. Next day, I thought I reinvented the wheel. I said 'I've got it again, I've figured it out.' Fast forward and I'm taking 30 or 40 a day. I could not get off of them." – Lenny Dykstra on how he got hooked on Vicodin.

"So I went [to Israel] alone, and what they did was they put me to sleep for ten hours and they suck all the opiates out of you with this medicine. It was actually the scariest thing I've ever been through." – Lenny Dykstra on going to Israel for a rapid detoxification program to get off painkillers.