Alex Rodriguez admitted that he used performance-enhancing drugs from 2001 to 2003 Monday in an interview with ESPN.

Rodriguez said he used banned substances due to the pressures of being baseball?s highest-paid player during his time with the Texas Rangers.

"When I arrived in Texas in 2001, I felt an enormous amount of pressure. I felt like I had all the weight of the world on top of me and I needed to perform, and perform at a high level every day," Rodriguez said.

The Yankees third baseman admitted his steroid use two days after Sports Illustrated reported he tested positive in 2003 during a confidential survey testing held by Major League Baseball to determine the prevalence of performance-enhancing drug use in the sport. According to Sports Illustrated?s report, Rodriguez is one of 104 players who tested positive. The results of the test were supposed to remain anonymous.

AP wire reports contributed to this article.