Adam LaRoche

David Adam LaRoche (born November 6, 1979) is an American former professional baseball first baseman who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB).

He played for the Atlanta Braves, Pittsburgh Pirates, Boston Red Sox, Arizona Diamondbacks, Washington Nationals and Chicago White Sox.

He is the son of pitcher Dave LaRoche and the brother of third baseman Andy LaRoche.

Adam LaRoche is a 1998 graduate of Fort Scott High School in Fort Scott, Kansas, where he played baseball.

He was named an All-American in baseball as a senior.

His uncle, Dave Regan, was his high school head coach.

He was drafted by the Florida Marlins in both the 1998 and 1999 amateur drafts, but refused to sign.

He played for his father, Dave, at Fort Scott Community College in 1999 before transferring to Seminole Community College in Seminole, Oklahoma in 2000, where he was an All-American and the most valuable player of the Junior College World Series.

He was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in 2000 and signed with the team.

For the start of the 2004 season, the Braves made LaRoche, who had not yet made his major league debut, their starting first baseman.

The left-handed LaRoche platooned with 46-year-old veteran Julio Franco and put up a respectable .278 rookie batting average.

LaRoche demonstrated his strong defensive skills at first base, but also a lack of speed running the bases.

LaRoche again platooned with Franco in 2005.

While he did hit 22 home runs, LaRoche had a very streaky season.

He hit .385 in his final 17 games of the year, but just .105 in the 19 games that preceded that streak.

He batted .500 with a grand slam in the Braves’ 2005 NLDS against the Houston Astros.

With the offseason departure of Franco, LaRoche became the Braves sole starter at first base in 2006.

On May 28, 2006, LaRoche contributed two of the Braves' record eight home runs in a remarkable win against the Chicago Cubs.

In addition, in a wild game against the San Diego Padres on July 14, 2006, LaRoche hit two more home runs and had five RBIs to help the Braves to a 15–12, 11-inning win.

He finished the year with a .285 average, 32 home runs, and 90 RBIs — all career bests.

The Braves traded LaRoche and minor league outfielder Jamie Romak to the Pittsburgh Pirates on January 17, 2007, for reliever Mike Gonzalez and minor league shortstop Brent Lillibridge.

During the 2009 season he played with his brother Andy LaRoche with the Pirates until July 22, 2009, when he was traded to the Boston Red Sox.

On May 13, 2009, LaRoche became the first player in major league history to have a home run taken away through the use of video replay.

LaRoche was traded to the Boston Red Sox for minor league pitcher Hunter Strickland and shortstop Argenis Díaz.

In six games, LaRoche would go on to hit one home run and three RBIs, with an average of .263.

During his brief tenure in Boston, LaRoche lived with his teammate J. D. Drew in Drew's home in Boston.

On July 31, 2009, after only spending six games with Boston, he was dealt back to his former team, the Atlanta Braves, for first baseman Casey Kotchman.

LaRoche was traded by Boston in order to cut payroll and because they believed that Kotchman would be a better pinch hitter than LaRoche.

On January 14, 2010, LaRoche agreed to a 1-year, $4.5 million contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

His deal included a $7.5 million mutual option with a $1.5 million buyout.

In his 1-year tenure with the Diamondbacks, LaRoche hit .261 with 25 home runs and 100 RBI in 151 games.

On January 4, 2011, LaRoche agreed to a 2-year contract with the Washington Nationals.

His contract paid him $7 million in 2011 and $8 million in 2012 with a mutual option for $10 million in 2013.

On April 7, LaRoche hit his first home run as a member of the Nationals, a game-winning two-run home run off Florida Marlins reliever Edward Mujica in the 11th inning of a 5–3 Nationals win.

His 2011 season ended with labrum surgery on his left shoulder with career-low batting numbers of .172/.288/.258 (BA/OBP/SLG).

LaRoche's 2012 season began much more successfully, hitting .329 in April.

He was a consistent bat throughout the season, driving in no fewer than 12 runs each month from April to August.

LaRoche accomplished a rare feat in early September when he homered in each game of a four-game series against the Chicago Cubs (and hit five home runs overall).

The only other players to match this feat are Hall-of-Fame sluggers Babe Ruth, Hank Greenberg, Yogi Berra, Johnny Bench, and Mike Schmidt.

On October 2, LaRoche reached two personal milestones.