LaRoche confirms retirement, says White Sox banned son

Adam LaRoche announced his retirement from baseball Friday, saying he made the decision after he was told by the Chicago White Sox he could no longer bring his 14-year-old son to the ballpark.

LaRoche made the announcement on Twitter, which read in part:

Prior to signing with the White Sox, my first question to the club concerned my son's ability to be a part of the team. After some due diligence on the club's part, we reached an agreement. The 2015 season presented no problems as far as Drake was concerned. (My bat and our record are another story!)

With all of this in mind, we move toward the current situation which arose after White Sox VP Ken Williams recently advised me to significantly scale back the time that my son spent in the clubhouse. Later, I was told not to bring him to the ballpark at all. Obviously, I expressed my displeasure toward this decision to alter the agreement we had reached before I signed with the White Sox. Upon doing so, I had to make a decision. Do I choose my teammates and my career? Or do I choose my family? The decision was easy, but in no way was it a reflection of how I feel about my teammates, manager, general manager or the club’s owner Jerry Reinsdorf.

The White Sox organization is full of people with strong values and solid character. My decision to walk away was simply the result of a fundamental disagreement between myself and Ken Williams.

Shortly after releasing his statement, the White Sox refuted LaRoche's assertion that his son was banned from the ballpark, stating once again that they only requested Drake not make daily visits.

The 36-year-old stunned baseball by announcing his intention to "step away" from the White Sox earlier this week. It was later revealed that his decision stemmed from the team asking LaRoche not to bring his son to the ballpark.

Players have expressed their distaste with management's decision. White Sox ace Chris Sale called Williams a liar earlier Friday.

LaRoche ends his career having slashed .260/.336/.462 while compiling 1,452 hits, 255 homers, and 882 RBIs over 12 seasons with six teams. He found perhaps his greatest success in Washington from 2011-14, where he won a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger in 2012, and helped the Nationals to a pair of division titles.

In retiring, LaRoche will forfeit his 2016 salary of $13 million. He joined the White Sox last winter on a two-year, $25-million contract.