We’ve had a few questions come up about Boggs, and why we refer to tasty Miller Lites as Boggs. Well my friends, open your ears and I’ll pour in a tale.
I heard the legendary story over my car radio as I was heading down I-5 to work about a year ago, listening to Mitch in the Morning on 950 KJR, as usual. For some reason or another, Mitch was gone that day so Steve Sandmeyer was hosting the show, and former Mariners and Yankees pitcher Jeff Nelson was sitting in as his sidekick.
Sandmeyer was killing some time by making small talk about baseball and about Nelly’s career and exploits as a major leaguer. 
The conversation turned to some of the funniest things Nelly had seen in his career when Sandy asked something like “who was the best with the ladies out of everyone you were around in baseball?” Nelson said that it was tough to say for sure, but that he figured it was probably Andre Dawson, the former Expos, Cubs, Red Sox, and Marlins slugger.
The two shared a laugh about the Hawk’s game, and then Sandmeyer stumbled upon the most compelling question ever articulated in an interview: “who would you say drank the most beer out of everyone you ever played with?” The following colloquy sheds some light on one of drinking’s biggest stars and on one of the greatest drinking feats of all time.
Sandy: Who would you say drank the most beer out of everyone you ever played with?
Nelson: Easy, Wade Boggs…..easy
Sandy: (laughing) Really!? Wade Boggs?
Nelson: Oh, yeah, without a doubt. I’ve never seen anyone drink as much beer as he did in my life:
Sandy: (laughing) Get outta here, alright, give me an example, like how much did he drink?
Nelson: Oh, I’d say, on a typical road trip, east coast to west coast [Nelly played with Boggs on the Yankees], say a road game to Seattle……Wade would drink anywhere between 50 and 60 beers.
Sandy: NO WAY!! 50 or 60 beers. That is impossible.
Nelson: No, I know…I know how crazy that sounds, and I wouldn’t believe it myself unless I saw him do it…..numerous times. And he drank nothing but Miller Lite.
Sandy: How in the hell did he have time to drink that many beers. For God’s sake, how many times did he have to go to the bathroom?
Nelson: I’m not kidding you Steve. Seriously. Wade was the kind of guy who was always the first one at the club house. 
So he’d get to the clubhouse, and he’d bring a six pack with him. He’d be there drinking a beer when someone showed up, and as we were all packing our stuff up out of our lockers and getting our bags ready for the trip, Wade would sit there and drink that whole six pack.
Now, at the time, we were flying out of New Jersey, so it was somewhat of a drive from Yankee stadium to the airport in New Jersey. Wade would drink another couple of beers on the bus to the airport. At the time, we were flying this older airplane, it couldn’t make it across the country without refueling, and it wasn’t the fastest airplane in the sky. So we would stop in North Dakota or something. Wade would drink about a half rack between New Jersey and North Dakota, and it would take about a half-hour to an hour to refuel once we got there, so he’d have a few more beers while we were grounded in North Dakota.
Once we got back up in the air, Wade would drink another 10, 11, 12 beers on the way out to the west coast. The whole flight from coast to coast ususally took us well over 7 hours. We’d touch down at Sea-Tac, hop on the bus headed to the Kingdome, and Wade would have another beer or two on the bus. Then, all of us would get to the Kingdome and unpack our bags and sit around and BS with eachother, and Wade would have a beer in his hand the entire time. He was always one of the last people to leave the club house too. So I’d say that all in all, he drank over 50 beers on the trip, and this wasn’t just an isolated incident, he did that almost every time.
Sandy: Unbelievable. That’s absolutely unbelieveable.
Nelson: Yeah, I know, I’m not kidding though, let’s call up somebody and they’ll tell you man, they’ll tell you I’m not lying.
Sandy: Alright, who should we call up. Let’s take a commercial break, and then we’ll call up somebody and see if we can’t get to the bottom of this….This is absolutely amazing.
[commercial break: When the commercial end, Paul Sorrento, a former Mariner and Devil Ray, and Boggs's and Nelly's former teammate, is on the phone]
Nelly: Hey Paul, good to hear from you man, I haven’t talked to you in a while. 
Sorrento: Yeah, what’s it been like, two, three years?
Nelly: Yeah. Hey, Paul, just to clarify now, I didn’t speak to you over the commercial break, and I haven’t talked to you about anything since we last talked a few years ago right?
Sorrento: Yeah, right.
Nelly: Alright Paul, we’ve been talking about Wade Boggs up here today in Seattle.
Sorrento: (laughing) Yeah, ole Wade huh.
Nelly: Yeah, alright Paul, I need you to answer one question for me, truthfully now….How many beers would Wade Boggs drink on an east coast to west coast road trip?
Sorrento: Oh, jeez, (exhaling like a flat tire) I don’t know, like 70.
Nelly, Sandberg, Sorrento, Hank: (Rolling on the ground laughing)
So there you have it, that’s the wonderful tale of Wade Boggs’ incredible drinking feats. So one day when a few of us at tasty booze were hanging around crushing some ice cold Miller Lites, and after I told them the story of Wade Boggs, we decided from then on that we would call a Miller Lite a Boggs in honor of the man who drank ‘em the best.
60 responses so far ↓
1 Mitch Martin // Apr 25, 2007 at 2:28 pm
I tip my hat to Wade…the greatest Boggs drinker ever.
By the way Happy Birthday Hank.
2 Mitch Martin // Apr 25, 2007 at 3:51 pm
And the legend continues. I was just reading throught the Wikipedia page for Wade Boggs and found this.
Shortly after his election to the Hall of Fame, Boggs appeared on ESPN’s “Pardon the Interruption” and refuted an urban legend that he had once consumed 64 beers on a cross-country flight from Boston to Los Angeles. He did not divulge the actual number of beers consumed, but did admit to having “a few Miller Lites”.
3 Lexington Steele // Apr 26, 2007 at 12:28 pm
Hank, great story. I like it better in person. Remind, how much of my hard earned tax dollars just went to you recanting that story?
4 Where the Boggs are Always Cold » Blog Archive » Tasty Booze - The Week in Review // Apr 29, 2007 at 5:48 pm
[...] The Origin of Boggs [...]
5 Unlikely Words » Wade Boggs: Big Time Drinker? // May 29, 2007 at 1:52 pm
[...] It says here that Wade Boggs regularly consumed 50-60 beers on cross country road trips. That’s during the trip from the East Coast to the West Coast, mind you, not during the entire trip. It seems a little hard to believe, but maybe it was around 20. I’d heard the Spring Training stories about Wade pulling up to the park and getting out of his trucks with empty beer cans clanging to the ground when he opened the door. Also, he ate fried chicken before every game, which I can’t really argue against. Share this post with: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages. [...]
6 Wendell Kim // May 29, 2007 at 8:33 pm
……Legendary……..
7 danny tweedie // May 31, 2007 at 10:17 am
wade is my hero.
8 F*BOSTON // Jun 1, 2007 at 3:08 pm
Quite possibly one of the funniest articles I have ever read! Wade Boggs is the MAN!
9 F*BOSTON Blog » Blog Archive » Wade Boggs is the Man! // Jun 1, 2007 at 3:31 pm
[...] Visit Source: http://tastybooze.com/2007/04/the-origin-of-boggs/ [...]
10 Joe Bivens // Jun 3, 2007 at 3:47 pm
Boggs didn’t eat fried chicken before every game. He ate chicken, but not necessarily fried. Sometimes it would be fried, but most days it would be prepared differently. According to him.
11 LA // Jun 4, 2007 at 8:22 am
Boggs played for the Yanks. No wonder he was a boozer! Hard for anyone to suit up for those clowns without tipping back a few. Just ask Paul O’Neill! hahahaha
12 Mitch Martin // Jun 5, 2007 at 11:03 am
Check out this awesome story submitted by one of our readers about his first hand experience with Wade and his ability to down the boggs.
A True Boggs Story - Reader Submitted
13 Sparky Lyle // Jun 7, 2007 at 11:08 am
When Wade played for the Red Sox he lived in the Granada Highlands in Saugus.
After a Sat. day game at Fenway-Wade would go to the Palace Nightclub in Saugus,MA one of those multi clubs under one roof. He would sit at a 50’s themed bar called Fenders with his wife Debbie and other players. Boggsie would bang down easily 60-70 beers from 9pm til closing at 1am. The beers would be bought by customers and mgmnt.
Wade was fantastic to fans signing autographs,posing for pics. He was a great tipper at the bar. At the end of the night he’d roll off a couple $100’s. He tipped everyone at the end of the season too when he left for FLA. Great guy. He brought in Greenwell,Jody Reed,Clemens, everyone.
I have no clue how he functioned the next day and go 4 for 4. I’d be in the hospital
getting a blood transfusion! He must have a weird genetic gene that takes care of his alcohol.
14 Joe Walker // Jun 7, 2007 at 11:32 am
I once saw Boggs inhale over 1000 beers in an hour and a half.
15 Joe Coggs // Jun 7, 2007 at 11:35 am
I remember this one time at band camp, we built a beer bong. It was over 600 feet long. We attached a trumpet to the end and filled it up. Then I climbed a 600 foot tower. Boggs took the beer bong and downed the whole thing, and in record time.
16 Joe Schmoe // Jun 7, 2007 at 11:39 am
Boggs was at my house for a pool party once. We filled the entire pool with Miller Lite. And guess what? Boggs drained it. He drank every drop. And my kids got to see it! Boggs is the greatest man of all time.
17 [ The Chill Factor ] // Jun 12, 2007 at 1:20 pm
[...] passed along this hilarious interview transcript where Jeff Nelson talks about his experiences with Wade Boggs. The funny thing is that I’ve [...]
18 Cakes // Jun 27, 2007 at 6:51 pm
True Story!!!!! The Only guy to every drink more beers than ole Boggsie was one Earl Dumplings in Boulder, CO. Earl, warmed up the night with a case of mikes hard (as an appetizer) then promptly went to town on 47 grenades of mickeys before he slammed 19 broads in various maneuvers/positions and called it a day. Mind you this was a Tuesday night duration was a total of 17 minutes and Boggs was once quoted as saying “Earl Dumplings can not only consume more drinks than I, but he is also notorious for the “three way HJ!”"
19 Earl D. // Jun 29, 2007 at 7:58 am
Wade Boggs doesnt have a horse cock. Horses have a Wade Boggs Cock!
20 Joey’s Thoughts » The Origin of Boggs // Jul 17, 2007 at 8:01 pm
[...] This is why Miller Lite will be called “Boggs” from now on. — Thanks Sam. Filed under Life at 9:01 pm [...]
21 Johnny T // Jul 18, 2007 at 3:19 pm
Simply awesome
22 Beers’ Spotlight: Sean Cusick « Bad News Beers // Sep 4, 2007 at 10:21 am
[...] Wade Boggs….Here’s why: http://tastybooze.com/2007/04/the-origin-of-boggs [...]
23 mo // Sep 9, 2007 at 2:31 pm
maybe if mattingly drank some miller lite, he would’ve stuck around another year and finally had that ring….
24 Barney // Sep 9, 2007 at 3:28 pm
How many Miller LITE you need to drink before you get some sort of effect from 0.5% alcool?
25 Tony // Sep 9, 2007 at 3:39 pm
I was a caddy at the St. Agnus links outside of Boston and I did a round for Boggs for one time. He hired me to hold his clubs and an extra caddy to carry 10 six-packs and by the 9th hole we had downed all the beers. He sent the caddy for a refill and by the end of 18, he down 123 beers. BTW, great tipper.
26 justin // Sep 9, 2007 at 4:59 pm
From wikipedia :
Boggs claimed that he once avoided being harmed by an assailant with a knife by willing himself invisible.
LOL
27 rob // Sep 10, 2007 at 4:21 am
You people realize this story is pretty embellished, right? I don’t doubt the guy drank constantly, but 50 beers in even 10 hours would put his BAC at over .70 .
28 HystErica // Sep 10, 2007 at 5:37 am
BILL BRASKY!!!!!!
29 Blogspedition » oh boggsy… // Sep 10, 2007 at 9:00 am
[...] Wade Boggs drinks 50 beers on a single road trip [...]
30 Brody // Sep 10, 2007 at 10:53 am
Been to Boggs’ home in Tampa, beer everywhere.
Great guy.
31 Don P // Sep 10, 2007 at 2:18 pm
When I saw Boggs at a bar in Chicago and had the bartender line up 50 Miller Lites to see if the story was true. Boggs gracefully refused the challenge. The patrons at the bar all gave him crap about it and after a few insults from some people, finally agreed to a drink-off. Only this time, I challeneged him to a beer bong of Grey Goose and the bar tab.
I beer bonged a 1/2 bottle of GG in about 3.8 seconds. I’m sure Boggs crapped his pants. In any fashion, he took it like a champ, finishing in about 5 seconds. He passed out about 10 minutes later. That’s when I took a sharpie and drew a smiling penis with a vain on his cheek.
Yeah Boggs, I got you good. I hoped you paid our bill before you got carried out.
32 Fast Cast // Sep 11, 2007 at 2:08 am
Wade Boggs is the reason tat Chuck Norris doesn’t drink.
33 Timothy C. Bohen » Blog Archive » Why Miller Lite is called “Boggs” // Sep 14, 2007 at 9:23 am
[...] The Origin of Boggs [...]
34 Damon Agnos » Intergenerational Ballin’ // Sep 20, 2007 at 6:34 pm
[...] however, a friend introduced me to an article detailing another of Boggs’ strange habits: drinking large amounts of Miller Lite. According to a couple of his former teammates, Boggs would drink somewhere in the neighborhood of [...]
35 Wade Boggs Has a Drinking Problem « Baseball Top News // Oct 3, 2007 at 2:48 am
[...] read more | digg story [...]
36 OBR News-o-Rama: 12/10 AM - OBR News-o-rama // Dec 10, 2007 at 7:06 am
[...] The Origin of Boggs - Tasty Booze (MLB) [...]
37 Man Drinks 48 Beers And Two Bottles Of Brandy A Day // Dec 11, 2007 at 1:30 pm
[...] is a guy who could give Wade Boggs a run for his money. A chronic alcoholic has told how he used to drink 48 cans of lager and two [...]
38 The Top 15 Posts Of 2007 // Jan 1, 2008 at 12:16 pm
[...] The Origin Of Boggs 2. Anyone Else Thirsty? 3. Casey Batchelor - Monday Morning Pick Me Up 4. Douche Bag Definition 5. [...]
39 Wade Boggs: Legendary Drunkard « Booze Blog // Jan 3, 2008 at 12:00 pm
[...] Apparently Wade Boggs was a serious beer swiller. [...]
40 Miller Lite? // Feb 12, 2008 at 8:04 pm
[...] were “wheat,” “amber,” and “blonde ale.” I really had no idea BOGGS could be so classy. Someone should go on a mission and track ‘em down and give all us Tasty [...]
41 » wade boggs is my hero The Brown Thunder Historical Preservation Society: What is going on in Brian Moriarty’s life. // Feb 16, 2008 at 9:05 am
[...] growing up, wade boggs was my favorite baseball player. i don’t know why, but he just was. maybe it was the moustache, i don’t know, but there was something i just loved about the wade. he’s the only player whose autograph i bought. it was 30 dollars and that was a fucking fortune when i was like ten. he pitched a perfect inning for no reason when the yankees were in the ninth inning of a game they weren’t gonna win. over the years, i have randomly blurted out random wade boggs facts. after reading this, wade boggs is now my hero. [...]
42 Anyone see this? - NY Sports Day Forums // Feb 26, 2008 at 8:19 pm
[...] This reminds me of the story about Wade Boggs drinking 50 to 60 beers on an east coast/west coast road trip. Not sure if it’s true or not, but from the way it’s presented here, these guys sound like they’re serious: The Origin of Boggs [...]
43 Mantastic Links // Mar 17, 2008 at 5:00 am
[...] 10 favorite drunks of all time. Of course, as we know here at Tasty Booze, their is no drunk like Wade Boggs. Enjoy your green [...]
44 BP // Apr 10, 2008 at 5:38 pm
Wade Boggs, Paul Sorrento, Miller Lites
45 The Greatest Story Ever Told : The Posterboy - A Blast Magazine Blog // Apr 11, 2008 at 7:41 am
[...] My friends and I joke about this particular story more than John Daly Drinks Diet Coke, so I had to one day let the world see what they have been missing. This is a story about a man and his love affair with a certain tasty beverage. I believe this to be the greatest feat that man has ever achieved. The story has been recounted by a blog known as Tasty Booze. [...]
46 Dude Abides // Apr 11, 2008 at 8:48 am
also from wikipedia: Boggs was portrayed in an episode of Futurama as a head in a sports museum. When Hank Aaron XXIV drinks out of Wade Boggs’s jar he says, “Wade Boggs, goes down smooth!”
now i guess we know why.
and although i like the ‘boggs’ term, in the parlance of our times i still prefer ‘Oat Soda’ as the proper nomenclature for Miller Lite.
47 Wade Boggs Enjoys the Occasional Beer « Lower Staff Row // Apr 11, 2008 at 11:16 am
[...] this at Deadspin and couldn’t resist re-posting. Apparently, Wade Boggs could pack in a few back in the day. Oh say, anywhere between 50-70 beers on your average road [...]
48 Andy L // Apr 13, 2008 at 5:16 pm
Does anyone have any audio of this interview? I would love to hear it!
49 Todd Meow // Jun 4, 2008 at 8:32 am
You seen my baseball?
50 carney lansford // Jul 30, 2008 at 10:24 am
I created a shirt to honor the power of Boggs and this article.
http://www.zazzle.com/pd/find/qs-wade%20boggs
51 Gettin’ All Up In Your Bases « The Crain Train // Sep 14, 2008 at 8:43 pm
[...] Also for this exercise, to keep with the baseball analogy, I’m adopting the form of Wade Boggs: [...]
52 Uncle Chin // Sep 17, 2008 at 10:17 pm
My buddy made this sign for the Pitt/VT Gameday show in 2004 when we went…the rest is history…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PgzEAeOREX0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75Gx8OmO9Rk&feature=related
53 Beer Review Friday - Hamm’s // Oct 10, 2008 at 8:00 am
[...] Here’s the scenario: My friend is having a house-warming party, a keg is provided, but like a good friend and knowing my friends, it is also recommended to bring alcohol. This alcohol serves two purposes - first, to avoid a beer-run after the keg gets tapped, and secondly, excess beer for when you come over in the next couple of weeks to watch football/baseball playoffs. Customarily, I bring my case of Miller Lite. [...]
54 JP // Nov 7, 2008 at 6:43 am
I once stayed at the same hotel in Florida the Yankees were at for Spring Training. Boggs settled in at the bar around 8 that evening (everyone at the hotel then harassed him for autographs all night, which he gave graciously); I remember getting off the elevator, probably 9am the next morning, and who was still at the bar, in the same stool, still chatting up tourists? Wade Boggs.
I wonder if any other players have had impressive hits/beers ratios?
55 What I’m Thankful For « Big Apple Sports: All New York Sports. All The Time. // Nov 28, 2008 at 4:14 am
[...] Wade Boggs. [...]
56 -= Wade Boggs vs. Beer — Boggs Wins =- // Jan 26, 2009 at 8:44 am
[...] Boggs Loves Beer…<br/> -m No Comments, Comment or Ping [...]
57 Misc: Top 5 – Hilariously Drunk Athletes « Trueball // May 22, 2009 at 11:34 am
[...] before an afternoon game. Boggs took it to another level, legend has it that he would drink between 50 and 60 beers when the Yankees had cross country flights to LA or San Fransisco. That is bordering on god like [...]
58 HAPPY BIRTHDAY WADE BOGGS!!! « Big Apple Sports: All New York Sports. All The Time. // Jun 14, 2009 at 11:11 pm
[...] faith in Wade Boggs and his golden liver. Finally, I was rewarded for my faith when I came across this classic story on Tasty Booze, where Wade’s former teammates confirm that he did in fact drink 64 beers on a cross-country [...]
59 John LaBare // Jun 16, 2009 at 4:20 pm
We had the pleasure of meeting and drinking with Mr Boggs in Key West last year. He and his wife, Debbie could not have been more gracious. We had a blast, a memorable night, and I’m sure he would remeber my Fiance shirt, “It’s five o’clock somewhere” that my fiance offered to him. Thanks Wade, and “Happy Bitrhday” from John and Marianne.
60 Wade Boggs, You’re My Hero - The Other Fifteen // Jun 19, 2009 at 10:29 am
[...] been an even better personality since he retired. If you don’t believe me, just check out this story about his legendary road trip drinking habits. June 19, 2009 – 10:29 am | By Jeremy Hawn | Posted in Basketball [...]
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