Union 'monitoring' LaRoche case, no decision on grievance

PEORIA, Ariz. (AP) - The head of the Major League Baseball players' union said Saturday there's no decision yet on whether to file a grievance on behalf of Chicago White Sox first baseman Adam LaRoche.

The 36-year-old LaRoche retired on Tuesday after he said he was told by the team president to cut down on clubhouse access for his 14-year-old son.

"I think what you've seen is everyone trying to get a feel for what happened here and what tomorrow may look like," union chief Tony Clark said after a meeting with San Diego Padres players at spring training. "All I can tell you is we're monitoring what's going on."

Clark said he's been in contact with LaRoche, but he deflected a question of whether the union knows if LaRoche had a verbal agreement with the White Sox to allow his son, Drake, to be around the team.

Clark did say the union is interested in separate rules and policies set by clubs, especially if they violate baseball's labor contract.

"We are interested in those, particularly when we find out about them," Clark said. "And we're always concerned about any individual agreement violates the collective bargaining agreement as a whole. That's where we end up engaging in conversations where we may not otherwise, when it has the potential to affect a much larger group."

LaRoche posted a statement to his Twitter account on Friday saying that after he signed his two-year, $25 million deal with the White Sox before the 2015 season, "we reached an agreement" that would allow his son to spend time with the team.

LaRoche said while he hit just .207 with 12 homers last season, there was never a problem with his son being around the team.

But LaRoche said White Sox executive Kenny Williams recently told him to scale back the time his son spent in the clubhouse, and later "I was told told not to bring him to the ballpark at all."

LaRoche instead chose to retire, walking away from $13 million owed this season.

White Sox ace Chris Sale and other teammates have come to LaRoche's defense. Sale has hung Drake's uniform outside his locker at spring training. Sale later accused Williams of lying to the team about the reasons for the move.

Clark acknowledged "there are strong opinions" about the situation, but said the union needed to gather more information.