"I got toasted drunk & threw up, I was so bummed" - When Alex Rodriguez was upset after joining Yankees instead of Red Sox

Alex Rodriguez once shared how he coped with the disappointment of not being traded to the Boston Red Sox during the 2003-04 offseason. He admitted to getting very drunk and eventually throwing up as he dealt with the frustration.

Rodriguez won his first MVP award with the Texas Rangers in 2003, after which the team looked to offload his massive 10-year, $252 million contract. The Red Sox aggressively pursued him and even agreed on a deal that would have sent Manny Ramirez and pitching prospect Jon Lester to Texas in exchange for him.

However, the deal fell apart after MLB rejected his willingness to restructure his contract to fit Boston’s payroll. The MLB Players Association ruled that he couldn't take a pay cut, as it would set a bad precedent for player contracts.

The news was tough for Alex Rodriguez to take. In a 2018 interview with NBC Sports Boston, he shared that he went to a place called Life and drank heavily to cope. However, gradually reality set in, and he quickly moved past the disappointment, focusing on his future with the Yankees.

"It was like this f**king big buzzkill," he said. "I think the game felt it, I know I felt it. I was saddened by it. I went out one night, there’s this place called Life, and I just got toasted drunk that night. I threw up, I was so bummed."

"Anyways, I went back home and just dusted off and said let’s go, gotta go play ball. And of course, the Yankee thing happened," he added.

After the Red Sox deal collapsed, the Yankees swooped in and traded for Rodriguez in February 2004, sending Alfonso Soriano and a minor leaguer to the Rangers.

Alex Rodriguez explains why he wanted to choose Red Sox over Yankees

Alex Rodriguez pictured at a press conference | Image Source: Getty

In the same interview with NBC Sports Boston, Alex Rodriguez explained why he preferred the Red Sox over the Yankees. He believed Boston was on the verge of winning something big—like the World Series—and wanted to be part of it.

"I thought they were just one step short,” he said. “And I knew once I met with (then-Red Sox general manager) Theo (Epstein) and (assistant to the general manager) Jed (Hoyer) -- we met here at the Four Seasons, kind of underground, we kind of snuck in the hotel -- and I saw the way these guys thought and the way these guys architect a house and put it all together, and I go, 'Holy shit, these guys are really, really smart.'"

"I knew that they were going to win and win big. So I kind of wanted to be a part of it,” he added.

Another reason Rodriguez mentioned was that the Yankees already had Derek Jeter, who played the same position as him at shortstop.

"At the time the Yankees weren't even part of the equation," he said. "They had a great shortstop in (Derek) Jeter; they had won four championships over the last eight years or so.”

After joining the Yankees, he moved to third base to accommodate Jeter and benefit the team. However, the Red Sox went on to win the 2004 World Series, proving his instincts right, while the Yankees infamously blew a 3-0 ALCS lead to them that year.