By Ryan Deal 

605 Sports

Logan Klaudt already had plenty on his plate.

In winter 2020, Klaudt was attending the University of South Dakota, working at Coyote sporting events and officiating high school basketball games. Klaudt, who was involved in other campus activities, was on track to graduate with a business administration degree. 

Then, life threw Klaudt a curveball on New Year’s Day 2021. After a workout, Klaudt had a seizure and doctors at Avera McKennan Hospital in Sioux Falls discovered a tumor. Klaudt had no prior history with seizures and regularly worked out to stay fit. 

Shock set in for Klaudt. 

“It’s a really scary deal to hear that you have a tumor in your head,” Klaudt said. “Because of a couple of things you think of, is it anywhere else? Is it spreading, or how bad is it? What are our options? You just start asking a lot of questions.”

An MRI revealed it was a benign tumor and it hadn’t spread, preventing radiation or chemotherapy. Klaudt underwent brain surgery and treatment at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. The tumor was successfully removed on Jan. 13, 2021. He was back home in Menno six days after brain surgery. 

Post surgery, Klaudt had paralysis on his left thigh and therapy followed for the next eight weeks. Physical therapy focused on building back his strength, while occupational therapy was centered around his left forearm.

“Occupational therapy was a lot of hard work,” Klaudt said. “It’s kind of a humbling experience. One day you go to work, you go workout, you are going to school and everything is normal. The next day you can't tie your shoes because your one hand doesn’t work.”

Klaudt was cleared three months after surgery and rejoined the Menno Mad Frogs for the 2021 amateur baseball season. He returned to officiating basketball games and resumed his college courses. 

“After all the rehab, you feel better about your abilities to do things,” Klaudt said. “Baseball is something I always loved. I really love the game of baseball. It’s kind of a test to think ‘OK, I just came back from surgery. My doctor says I am healthy and can I still play the game that I love?’ ”

A 2019 Menno High School graduate, Klaudt was involved in cross-country, football, basketball, track and field and baseball growing up. He began playing with the Mad Frogs as an American Legion pick-up player in 2019. He’s continued to play the past two summers and he’s appeared in 10 games this season, batting .308 on the year. 

“Amateur baseball to me is special because a lot of these small towns like Menno during the summer, there might not be a whole lot going on,” Klaudt said. “It’s really a chance for the community to sort of come together to spend your Sunday night or Thursday night at the ball field watching the game. Those are some of my favorite memories from when I was a kid, especially going to the games with my folks and now as a player. It’s a chance to hang out with some of my friends and continue playing the game that I really like.” 

For his efforts and commitment to the sport, Klaudt is the 2023 Mark Mehlhaf Memorial Comeback Player of the Year, an honor that dates back to 1981 by the South Dakota Amateur Baseball Association. 

The recognition was both surprising and humbling for Klaudt.

“I am really grateful for it,” Klaudt said. “I am just glad I was able to make a full recovery and come back to play baseball and I can still enjoy the game that I love.”  

Klaudt, 22, graduated in May with a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a minor in sports management. He’s been accepted to the University of Kansas School of Business. 

As for his health, he’s back to enjoying life after the scare more than two years ago. 

“All my checkups have been really good so far,” Klaudt said. “It’s just trying to put everything behind me, and really enjoy doing life without any restrictions and playing baseball.”