Adam LaRoche Says He Went Undercover To Help Underage Sex Slaves

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Adam LaRoche was apparently living a double life last year -- professional baseball player by summer, undercover agent by fall.

In an interview with ESPN The Magazine about his sudden retirement last month, the former first baseman revealed that he and Brewers pitcher Blaine Boyer spent 10 days in November undercover in southeast Asian brothels in an effort to help free underage sex slaves.

Working for the nonprofit group the Exodus Road, LaRoche and Boyer wore hidden cameras to record footage used to determine the age of the girls and identify their bosses.

"I was sick," said LaRoche, who has a 14-year-old son and 12-year-old daughter. "I was thinking about my kids and then thinking about the hundreds of thousands of parents who are searching for their 12-year-old daughters."

Added Boyer: "Something huge happened there for us. You can't explain it. Can't put your finger on it. If you make a wrong move, you're getting tossed off a building. We were in deep, man, but that's the way it needed to be done. Adam and I truly believe God brought us there and said, 'This is what I have for you boys.'"

LaRoche made headlines last month when he abruptly retired from the Chicago White Sox, walking away from his $13 million salary, after team president Ken Williams requested LaRoche limit the amount of time his son, Drake, spent in the team clubhouse.

LaRoche said he told his teammates: "I am choosing my son over you guys. I cannot tell you how much I hate that I'm even having to make this decision, and how much it crushes me to feel like I could be leaving you guys hanging."

MORE: Palladino: Moderation And Common Sense Lacking In LaRoche Saga

Williams said last month that LaRoche's son was welcome in the clubhouse but that he asked the first baseman to "dial it back."

"I don't think he should be here 100 percent of the time — and he has been here 100 percent, every day, in the clubhouse," he said. "I said that I don't even think he should be here 50 percent of the time. Figure it out, somewhere in between."