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White Sox DH Adam LaRoche planning to step away from baseball – Chicago Tribune
White Sox designated hitter Adam LaRoche said Tuesday that he plans to step away from baseball following a personal issue.
The 12-year major-league veteran said he is confident in his decision, but his teammates asked him to reconsider during a nearly two-hour-long team meeting at Camelback Ranch on Tuesday morning.
LaRoche, 36, said out of respect for the Sox he will consider their requests before talking more on the subject in a couple of days.
“I’m confident I am stepping away from baseball,” LaRoche said. “My teammates have asked me for an hour (to reconsider). I’ve tried to convince them I am convinced, but I will do them that, and give it a day or two, and then come back in and finish the story.”
Sox general manager Rick Hahn said he was surprised to find out about LaRoche’s news Tuesday morning but said he is “respectful” of the decision and understands his perspective. He doesn’t anticipate LaRoche changing his mind, despite an “outpouring of support” from teammates and coaches at the meeting.
“He woke up this morning resolute in his decision making,” Hahn said. “I don’t know if he quite anticipated what he was going to hear from his teammates, coaches and the rest of us. We just asked him to make sure he was comfortable with everything he decided and what route he wants to go. But this is a very thoughtful individual, a very strong-willed individual who believes in his convictions.”
LaRoche’s retirement would leave the Sox without a designated hitter and backup first baseman but also would free up $13 million in salary. The club has a surplus of outfielders with the addition of Austin Jackson last week, and they could use Avisail Garcia or Melky Cabrera in a DH role.
Hahn said the club will look at internal and external options to fill the opening.
“We wanted to build a roster that had protection,” Hahn said. “I certainly didn’t foresee retirement being one of the options that we needed protection against, but it’s not dissimilar from an injury or an underperformance situation where we needed to call upon our depth. … We are not going to leave any stones unturned going forward whether it’s internal options or external over the comings weeks and months.”
LaRoche and Hahn didn’t delve into the circumstances of the move, with LaRoche saying he would speak on it more in a couple of days.
LaRoche had played in just two spring training games this year before being sidelined with back spasms, but Hahn said Tuesday the injury was progressing.
“Thank u Lord for the game of baseball and for giving me way more than I ever deserved! #FamilyFirst,” LaRoche tweeted Tuesday afternoon.
LaRoche walked into the Sox clubhouse a little before 9 a.m. Tuesday in street clothes, accompanied by his son Drake, who has a locker at the Sox’s spring training and home facilities. Sox manager Robin Ventura had said Sunday that LaRoche planned to return to the lineup Monday, but he didn’t play in the game against the Royals.
“I didn’t come in yesterday because I wanted to make sure it was the right move and not make an emotional decision, but I’m confident it is,” LaRoche said.
LaRoche is a career .260 hitter with 255 home runs and 882 RBIs over his time with the Braves, Pirates, Red Sox, Diamondbacks, Nationals and White Sox.
He joined the Sox on a two-year, $25 million contract before the 2015 season, but his first season with the Sox was one of the more frustrating of his career. He hit .207 with 12 home runs, 44 RBIs and 133 strikeouts.
At the beginning of spring, he spoke about the tough season, which included battling tendinosis in his knee late in the year. But he also said he entered camp in great shape following an offseason that included CrossFit training.
“It was draining,” LaRoche said then of 2015. “I really don’t want to go through that again.”
LaRoche, who would be walking away from the $13 million owed him this year, has a variety of outside interests, including partial ownership in a ranch, meat company and steakhouse and participation in the TV show “Buck Commander.”
“We’ve always known this was a high-character guy,” Hahn said. “If this is the end, this was a guy who obviously had a very solid, extensive big-league career, and in the end was playing this game for the right reasons, not for strictly economic ones.”