Veteran first baseman Adam LaRoche surprised the baseball world Tuesday by announcing his retirement because of a personal issue, despite having a year left on his contract with the Chicago White Sox.

LaRoche told reporters he would reveal more about why he made the decision at a later date.

Neither LaRoche nor his brother Andy, who also is a former major-leaguer, played in the Midwest League, but their father did. Dave LaRoche played for the Quad City Angels in 1967 and 1968, first as an outfielder, then as a pitcher. He played 95 games as an outfielder for the 1967 team, batting .234 with 6 HR, 40 RBI and 11 SB. In 1968 he made 15 appearances as an outfielder, four appearances as a first baseman, and 33 appearances as a pitcher (including five starts). He went 5-7 with a 2.36 ERA, 80 strikeouts and 29 walks in 84 innings, and batted .214 with 2 HR and 9 RBI. He was used strictly as a pitcher after that season, and went on to play 14 years in the big leagues.