White Sox chairman ends LaRoche probe, backs Williams
GLENDALE, Ariz. - White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf has concluded his internal investigation into the Adam LaRoche situation. He released a statement Sunday.
Reinsdorf said he continues to have complete faith in the skills of Sox leadership, calling the fallout from LaRoche's retirement - which stemmed from the Sox telling him to cut back on son Drake LaRoche's access in the clubhouse - "might have been handled differently" and resulted as a miscommunication, "rather a case of anyone not telling the truth."
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Jerry Reinsdorf's statement
Here is the full statement issued Sunday by White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf on his investigation into the handling of the clubhouse situation that led to Adam LaRoche's retirement:
"I have taken the past few days to personally meet with everyone involved, including Adam LaRoche, members of our front office, uniformed staff and some of our active players. I continue to have nothing but the greatest regard for Adam - in fact, my respect for him has grown during this process - and I applaud his desire to spend more time with his family.
"I continue to have complete faith in the skills and abilities of the leadership group of our baseball operations department in Ken Williams, Rick Hahn and Robin Ventura. I also appreciate the passion and commitment to one another shown by our players, Robin, our coaching staff and our front office. As with many things in life, much of this was a result of miscommunication and misunderstanding rather than this being a case of anyone not telling the truth. I do not believe there is anyone to directly blame in this situation. While there is no doubt this might have been handled differently, the fact remains that this is an internal matter that we have discussed and now resolved.
"Per my request, White Sox employees will no longer discuss this matter publicly. I felt it was appropriate to release this statement to close the issue for everyone in the organization - from the front office to the players in the clubhouse - so we can focus on Opening Day and winning baseball games for our fans. I am fully confident this matter will soon be behind us and that we will grow even stronger and more united as a team and as an organization."