Podcast: Wake Forest coach Tom Walter on push for national title

Wake Forest coach Tom Walter has six New England natives on his 2024 roster. (Jaylynn Nash/ACC Baseball)

The latest guest on The Base Path Podcast is the coach of one of a handful of favorites to win a national championship in 2024 — Wake Forest University coach Tom Walter.

Walter’s 2023 Demon Deacons squad posted program records in regular season wins (45) and overall wins (54), earning the program’s third College World Series appearance. Wake Forest entered NCAA Regional play as the No. 1 seed in the tournament.

During his 15 seasons at Wake Forest, Walter has established a recruiting pipeline in New England. The 2024 team will have six New England natives on the roster, including Andrew Noland (East Greenwich, R.I.), Zach Johnston (North Yarmouth, Maine), Jack Winnay (Newton, Mass.), Cole Roland (Duxbury, Mass.), Evan Maloney (North Kingstown, R.I.), and Reed Mascolo (Fairfield, Conn.).

“We love recruiting in New England for a lot of different reasons,” Walter said. “One, they get a chance to play ACC baseball at a southern school in better weather. The ACC is their league of preference because we do get up to Boston; obviously, we’re coming up there this year. We’re also a good academic school. And in general, the kids in the Northeast really value education. Finally, a lot of times the New England kids play multiple sports, which we love.”

Walter is also recognized in baseball circles for his humanitarian causes. A former player, Kevin Jordan, may be the greatest beneficiary of Walter’s selflessness. Jordan was a major league prospect in 2010 when he was diagnosed with a kidney disease, which required a transplant. After none of Jordan’s family members was deemed to be a donor match, Walter volunteered to be tested and offered Jordan one of his kidneys. The transplant was performed on Feb. 7, 2011.

“At the time I volunteered to be tested, I didn’t know what that meant,” Walter said. “I didn’t know what the surgery entailed. I didn’t know the risks of the surgery. I didn’t know what life after the surgery would look like. I just saw a young man who needed my help. Like any one of our coaches would do for any one of our players, if you have the ability to help, then you’re going to do that, especially when it’s something like this.

“People talk about my courage in this story, but the courage in the story is Kevin Jordan. He moved from Vienna, Ga., a small town in Georgia, where he was fighting for his life. He was on full-time dialysis, and he moved to Winston Salem (N.C.) and bet on us. He took a chance coming here. I have a saying that I share with our team all the time. To whom much is given, much is required. Our players give us a lot, and that requires a lot from us as coaches to give back.”

Listen to the entire podcast with Wake Forest coach Tom Walter.

The New England Baseball Journal podcast is brought to you by the University of Nebraska High School.

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