Tony La Russa sentenced to one day in jail, says he'll 'prove' he doesn't have a 'drinking problem'

The newly-hired manager of the White Sox pleaded guilty to a reckless driving charge from February

White Sox manager Tony La Russa was sentenced for February arrest on Monday, getting one day in jail, a fine of $1,383 and 20 hours of community service, per multiple reports (Jon Seidel). The day in jail has been commuted to one day of home detention. 

La Russa, 76, was arrested in February in Arizona on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol after he ran into a curb. His blood-alcohol content was 0.08. According to the police report obtained by ESPN a few weeks ago, La Russa tried to talk his way out of the charges, telling the arresting officer: "Do you see my ring? I'm a Hall of Famer baseball person. I'm legit. I'm a Hall of Famer, brother." 

In the aftermath of the report, we learned that the White Sox were aware of the La Russa arrest before hiring him and that La Russa had a plea agreement in place. He pleaded guilty and the charge was reduced to reckless driving. 

"Mr. La Russa knows he made a mistake last February and deeply regrets it. He is embarrassed and concerned. He knows what he did was wrong," said his attorney, Lawrence Kazan (via Daryl Van Schouwen). "He has always been a straightforward, sincere man who knows he alone brought this on himself."  

"I know I don't have a drinking problem, just like I know I made a serious mistake in February," La Russa said (via Scott Merkin). "Where I am right now is to prove I don't have a drinking problem and to prove it every day off the field that I'm going to handle it."  

The White Sox have issued the following statement: 

"With today's announcement, Tony La Russa accepted responsibility and has been held legally accountable for his poor behavior and the questionable choices he made last February. The White Sox understand the anger and concern expressed by some about hiring Tony under these circumstances. 

Tony has expressed to us his remorse, and he understands he brought this on himself. 

We understand that people make mistakes and exercise poor judgment in life. In this case, Tony is fortunate his decisions that night did not injure himself or anyone else. We also believe people deserve the opportunity, at all points in their lives, to improve. Tony knows there is no safety net below him. There cannot be a third strike.

Tony has a proud and productive history with the White Sox and Major League Baseball, which is why we are standing by him. He has done his job exceptionally well in the past. He has always shown an ability to inspire his players and to bring his teams to a championship level. We are confident that Tony will improve our team, while improving himself."La Russa hasn't managed since winning the 2011 World Series with the Cardinals. In 33 seasons as a skipper, he's won 2,728 games, six pennants and three World Series titles. The White Sox are coming off a breakthrough season where they went 35-25, but were bounced in the first round of the playoffs in Oakland. In the days that followed, they parted ways with Rick Renteria and decided to go with La Russa, who last managed the White Sox from 1979-86.