DENVER – Alex Rodriguez and agent Scott Boras picked quite a time for their big announcement.

Smack in the middle of Game 4 of the World Series, Boras ended months of speculation and said A-Rod is opting out of the final three seasons of his contract with the New York Yankees.

Oh, and Boras let the Yankees know by leaving a voice mail for general manager Brian Cashman.

“Kind of strange timing,” Red Sox president Larry Lucchino said after Boston completed its sweep of Colorado.

Red Sox fans sure took notice fast. After their team won the title for the second time in four seasons, they stood behind the visitors’ dugout at Coors Field and chanted: “Don’t sign A-Rod!”

In a decision that likely ends four tumultuous and unfulfilling seasons with the Yankees, Rodriguez forfeited $72 million he was owed over the final three seasons of his record $252 million, 10-year deal, which he signed with Texas before the 2001 season. The Yankees lose $21.3 million in remaining payments from the Rangers, a subsidy agreed to at the time of his 2004 trade.

New York, which failed to make the World Series in all of Rodriguez’s seasons, has said it would not attempt to re-sign A-Rod if he opted out. Hank Steinbrenner, a son of Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, reiterated that point Monday, dismissing the possibility of negotiations.

“No chance,” he said from Tampa. “Not if it’s made official (filing letters on opting out). I haven’t talked with Brian yet today.”

Hank Steinbrenner did not make much of the announcement coming during the World Series.

“It doesn’t matter to me, the timing,” he said. “But I’m sure there’s a lot of people that aren’t very happy about it. Other baseball people, the commissioner’s office, the Red Sox.”

Hank Steinbrenner said the team left messages with Rodriguez, and “we really wanted to meet with him.”

“We wanted him to stay a Yankee. We wanted to let him know how much we wanted him,” he said. “The bottom line is … do we really want anybody that really doesn’t want to be a Yankee? How the heck can you do that? Compare him with Jeter. Jeter, since he was a little kid, all he ever wanted to do was play shortstop for the Yankees. That’s what we want.”

As for the possibility of A-Rod winding up in Boston, Lucchino said: “We’re staying out of that discussion.”

Said David Ortiz: “Man, I never would walk away from $150 million.”

Boras said he attempted to notify Cashman of the decision but couldn’t reach him, so he left the voice mail.

“He was traveling and I was traveling,” Boras said.

Boras said during a telephone interview that Rodriguez made his choice because he was uncertain whether Mariano Rivera, Jorge Posada and Andy Pettitte would return to the Yankees. Boras said it became clear that the others wouldn’t make a decision by Rodriguez’s deadline to opt out – 10 days after the World Series.

“Alex’s decision was one based on not knowing what his closer, his catcher and one of his statured pitchers was going to do,” Boras said. “He really didn’t want to make any decisions until he knew what they were doing.”

Cashman did not respond to messages seeking comment.

Now that A-Rod has made his decision, Texas turns out to be the biggest winner – saving the remaining money it would have had to pay New York as part of the trade. Boras said the Rangers are still responsible for $3 million in annual deferred money A-Rod is owed in the next three years under the contract.

“We’re going to wait until we hear officially, but obviously it would be welcome news on our end,” Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said in an e-mail to The Associated Press.

AP Sports Writer Stephen Hawkins in Dallas and AP freelancer Mark Didtler in Tampa, Fla., contributed to this report