Vernon: Teams need specific clubhouse rules for kids

Former three-time All-Star outfielder and theScore MLB contributor Vernon Wells reacts to Adam LaRoche's decision to step away from baseball over a dispute with White Sox management regarding his son's presence in the team clubhouse. The following is from a conversation with theScore's Dan Toman.

For ballplayers, there's a very fine line you can walk with respect to bringing your kids in the clubhouse. Your teammates are in there and trying to concentrate on what's coming, and if your kid is running around being crazy, it's a distraction. I always made sure my boys knew that when you're in the clubhouse, you're sitting in my locker, and you're not running around just anywhere.

My kids would be on the field more than the clubhouse, and they'd usually come between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. because once three rolls around, everyone's in there, media's starting to show up, and you're sort of getting into work time. I can understand both sides of it because there were several times where there were kids in the clubhouse and, honestly, the kids thought it was their house and they owned the place, which is not right by any means.

I don't know what the situation was between Adam LaRoche and the Chicago White Sox. It's a sensitive subject, especially given that LaRoche is willing to walk away from the game over it. It reminds you just how valuable that time is for ballplayers. We miss out on so much of that family time that when we do get the chance to bring them to the ballpark, especially when they're young, meeting big leaguers, and starting to fall in love with baseball, it's a special moment.

The LaRoche situation sucks. It's unfortunate that you're having these types of conversations, but if the White Sox feel as an organization that you need to be focusing more on baseball when you're at the field, then I understand that, too.

Some players don't have that same talk with your kid like I did, so it can make for annoying times. There's an issue if you bring your kids in and they're running around the clubhouse like a playground. If they're hanging out like that in there, they probably shouldn't be there anyway. They need to be out on the field or at home running around like chickens with their heads cut off.

At the end of the day, it all comes down to timing. Getting that extra bonding with our families is so valuable, and so if I was manager or GM, kids would be allowed in the clubhouse between the hours of 1 p.m. and 3 p.m., 100 percent of the time. That's already sort of your free time at the ballpark, so why not let the kids share that experience, too. I'd also allow them in the clubhouse after every win. Those would be my rules. Frankly, if teams set rules in the first place, you wouldn't have any of these issues.