Despite surgery, the one thing Brent Warren does not lack is heart

There’s an old saying in sports when a player gives it his all: “That kid has heart.”

Cedar Rapids (Iowa.) Xavier High School first baseman/outfielder Brent Warren gives that saying a whole new meaning. 

What should have been a routine physical examination prior to basketball season in his junior year turned Brent Warren’s life upside down. After open-heart surgery then a speedy recovery, it is his “upside” as a baseball player that has excited coaches and scouts around the country.

“This young man’s best days are ahead of him as a baseball player,” said University of Iowa hitting coach and recruiting coordinator Ryan Brownlee. 

For a while, Warren thought his participation in the game of baseball would be outside of the white lines, as doctors told him his days as an athlete might be over.

“Baseball was my life, and to have both baseball and nearly my life taken away was really rough,” Warren said. “I just had to stay positive.” 

Following the surgery to correct an aortic valve which was restricting blood flow to his body, Warren dropped 20 pounds and lost much of his strength. He went from running a 6.5 second 60-yard dash to being weak. The lesson was not lost on Warren, who now has a better understanding of the big picture.

“After going through something like that, you really don’t take anything for granted and you appreciate the things you love,” Warren said. “The little things don’t bother me anymore, and I think it’s made me a better man.” 

Warren returned to the diamond in the summer of 2007 to help Xavier to a state championship despite playing at less than 100-percent strength at the time.

“Other than just being a little weak in the chest, I feel like I’m back to full strength now,” said Warren, who even has returned to the basketball court this year as a senior. “I only have to go for check-ups once a year, just like most grown men do.” 

Now back at full strength and feeling no ill affects from a surgery that left an eight inch scar on his chest, Warren put himself back on the prospect radar with excellent performances in the AFLAC All-American Game and in prospect showcase games in Jupiter, Florida and Cincinnati.

“Playing in those games against the best competition in the country, and doing well, really gave me a lot of confidence,” said Warren, who announced his presence at the National Showcase in Cincinnati with a couple of towering blasts off a scoreboard during batting practice. 

The left-handed hitting Warren turned down Arizona State and Kentucky to sign with two-time defending NCAA National Champion Oregon State, a move that was popular with Brent’s father, Chris.

“We’ll be moving back to Oregon this summer after the baseball season,” said Chris of the state where Brent lived from age 4-8. “We loved it there before, and it will be nice to be able to watch Brent play another three or four years in Corvallis.” 

Brent is just as excited to be heading west, although it’s increasingly possible those plans could get sidetracked by the Major League Baseball draft in early June.

“The environment and coaches at Oregon State are great,” Brent said. “The whole program just has a great level of energy and confidence.”

That will also mean the family will have to leave behind the batting cage installed in the basement of their home, where Brent is sometimes heard taking swings well past midnight. 

“A lot of people don’t see just how hard he works at it,” Chris said. “It’s great to have a child with such a passion for something.”

Even if Brent Warren doesn’t become a major-league star, it won’t be because he didn’t have the heart.