Ballplayer With 1 Kidney Faces Ban

Cody Beaumaster, a sophomore pitcher at Kennedy High who had his left kidney removed at age 5, may be banned from high school baseball if the Los Angeles Unified School District determines that the condition could endanger his life during competition.

Beaumaster, 15, will meet today with Dr. Helen Hale, the district’s director of student health services, to determine his immediate baseball future.

Beaumaster, 6 feet and 165 pounds, has worked his way onto the Kennedy varsity as a starting pitcher. He was looking forward to the season when, during a mandatory athletic physical, he indicated that he had only one kidney.

That disclosure raised concerns among Kennedy officials, who cited California Interscholastic Federation and American Medical Assn. findings that urge caution in such situations.

If the remaining functioning kidney was punctured or badly damaged, death could result.

“It’s an American Medical Assn. guideline that if an athlete has a questionable medical history, the athlete won’t be allowed to compete in contact or semi-contact sports,” Kennedy nurse Mary Young said. “At this time we are just following the procedure to determine whether or not he’ll be able to play baseball.

During a meeting Wednesday with Dr. Guilda Esterhart, the Kennedy campus physician, Beaumaster’s father, Robert Beaumaster, presented a statement from Dr. Dudley Danoff, a urologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, that said Danoff had examined Beaumaster and cleared him to play.

“Our family doctor (Danoff) says people can live their entire lives, actively, with only one kidney,” Robert Beaumaster said. “He said Cody would be in no danger while playing baseball.”

Hale said that Beaumaster’s case would be handled like any other.

“It’s all on an individual basis,” she said. “It’s a matter of medical clearance and the district has no official policy on matters like this.

“The absence of a kidney is very serious, though.”

Caught in the cross fire is Beaumaster, a right-hander who pitched his North Valley All-Star team to a youth baseball championship.

“If they don’t let me play, I’ll be crushed,” Beaumaster said. “I just don’t understand why, all of a sudden, I can’t play ball.”

Added Kennedy Coach Manny Alvarado: “It would really be sad if Cody doesn’t get to play.”