In his days with the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies, Lenny Dykstra's tough play earned him the nickname "Nails." After retiring from baseball in 1996, Dykstra parlayed his fame into a career as a financial writer and stock picker, penning a pricey investment newsletter (annual subscription: $999.95) and a column for TheStreet.com. If Dykstra could win in baseball, he could pick winning stocks -- or so went the sales pitch.

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Dykstra claims on his Web site Nails Investments to have picked 110 winners and, more surprisingly, zero losers as of June 18. But he didn't invest in his own picks and instead put his money into The Players Club, a lifestyle and financial magazine that, according to its Web site, accentuated "the positive aspects of being a professional athlete." Before the second issue was published, Dykstra was sued by his partner, Doubledown Media, and accused of skipping out on his debts.

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He filed for bankruptcy in July, claiming between $10 million and $50 million in liabilities and less than $50,000 in assets. As recently as April, according to an article on ESPN.com, Dykstra claimed a net worth of $60 million and owned a Rolls-Royce and a Gulfstream jet.

Continued: Refinancing at the wrong time