Wake coach donates kidney

Wake Forest baseball coach Tom Walter donated one of his kidneys for use in a transplant involving current Demon Deacon freshman and Perfect Game alum Kevin Jordan.

The transplant procedure took place Monday and both player and coach are expected to make complete recoveries.

“When we recruit our guys, we talk about family and making sacrifices for one another,” Walter told USA Today before the procedure. “It is something we take very seriously. I had the support of my family, Wake Forest and my team. To me it was a no-brainer.”

Jordan, a 19-year-old outfielder from College Park, Ga., was a regular participant in Perfect Game WWBA events from 2008 through 2010, usually as a member of the Atlanta Blue Jays travel team. Ranked 100th nationally and 14th in the state of Georgia by PG, he was drafted in the 19th round of the 2010 amateur draft by the New York Yankees, but elected to honor his scholarship offer from Wake Forest.

He was diagnosed with a rare kidney ailment after having already committed to Wake Forest and he stayed enrolled in classes during the fall semester while also undergoing up to 20 hours of daily home dialysis.

Walter is hoping to be in the Demon Deacons’ dugout for their season-opener against LSU on Feb. 18. Jordan’s baseball future is more uncertain.

“If Jordan makes it back to the playing field, that would be a great story,” Walter told USA Today. “I just want him to have a normal life and have the chance to be a normal college student.”

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