Ron Darling Says Lenny Dykstra Shouted Racial Slurs at Dennis 'Oil Can' Boyd in '86 World Series

Darling claims Dykstra shouted "foul, racist, hateful, hurtful stuff" at Red Sox SP Dennis 'Oil Can' Boyd.
Ron Darling Says Lenny Dykstra Shouted Racial Slurs at Dennis 'Oil Can' Boyd in '86 World Series
Ron Darling Says Lenny Dykstra Shouted Racial Slurs at Dennis 'Oil Can' Boyd in '86 World Series /

Former Mets starting pitcher Ron Darling claimed ex-teammate Lenny Dykstra shouted racial slurs at Red Sox pitcher Dennis "Oil Can Boyd" during the 1986 World Series on Tuesday. 

Darling appeared on ESPN's Golic and Wingo in advance of his new book, "108 Stitches: Loose Threads, Ripping Yarns, and the Darndest Characters from My Time in the Game."

In the book, Darling writes 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 told Golic and Wingo there is "no chance that I misremembered" the alleged incident, adding that his former Mets teammates, "have my back."

Boyd appeared on WFAN on Tuesday to address Darling's allegation. 

"This is all new to me." Boyd said. "Nothing rattled me because I didn't know what was going on. I just left a slider out over the plate." 

Dykstra said he plans to sue Darling and his book's publisher during an appearance on the Michael Kay Show on Monday. 

"I'm going to sue him and the publisher," Dykstra said . "I wrote a book myself. I had 30 lawyers calling me fact-checking everything. There is not one person to back this up, because you know why, it's not true. It's all a lie."

Darling and Dykstra played together in New York for five seasons from 1985–89. The Mets won the World Series over the Red Sox in 1986.  


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Michael Shapiro
MICHAEL SHAPIRO

Michael Shapiro is a staff writer for Sports Illustrated. He is a Denver native and 2018 graduate of The University of Texas at Austin.