WHO DOESN'T NEED 13 MILLION?

"Who doesn't need 13 million dollars?" These are the words uttered by former MLB player Adam LaRoche as he admitted on Good Morning America on Tuesday morning that "baseball was never my world, that there is more to life." And there is more to the story of why LaRoche decided to move on from the sport that he played for most of his life.

According to a report on QPolitical and confirmed by GMA, LaRoche left his cleats behind for more than just the Chicago White Sox changing their mind about his son's presence in the clubhouse. He left for reasons of faith and other interests off the ball field.  (For more background read: THE 3 SIDES OF THE LaROCHE SAGA)

Last November, LaRoche and Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Blaine Boyer began working for a nonprofit organization called The Exodus Road whose mission is to rescue young girls from sex slave brothels in Southeast Asia.  "How many of you would step away from $13 million dollars? Most people would have a difficult time doing that, but Adam Laroche isn’t like most people. While it was assumed that he retired because of reasons stemming from his son not being allowed in the clubhouse, this new information throws a wrinkle into that theory," reported QPolitical.com

It is clear that LaRoche is not only a family man, but a hero of a different kind when it comes to his work to stop sex trafficking and to living this life for a higher purpose.  "I think having my own kid, having two kids of my own, especially a 12-year-old daughter, it's impossible not to picture, you know, 'What if this was my daughter?' " LaRoche explained to ABC News.  His son Drake was just the final deciding factor to help LaRoche make the decision to leave the game for good.

"Honestly, it's not the end of the world to me. And I thank my parents for that. The way I was raised. Because baseball – and I've said it before, I don't want to be defined by this game. I know there's a lot more to life," stated LaRoche

We all could use 13 million dollars.  But once we got 13 million, would we be truly satisfied?  Let's see if this puts things into perspective...

Early Tuesday morning, a fellow runner and education colleague was running on a road near a high school where he worked as superintendent.  A 17-year-old girl was texting and I am thinking you know what happened.  My colleague and a member of the running community was killed in tragic accident.

We have to use the time we have to positively impact others because at the end of the day, tomorrow could be our last day.  LaRoche did what he needed to do because he just felt there was for him to give, somewhere else.  And I respect that.  And I think deep down, you do too.

  

--Suzie Pinstripe, BYB Senior Staff Writer
BYB Hot Stove Columnist
Twitter: @suzieprof




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