After heart and kidney transplant, Hall-of-Famer Harold Baines to return for White Sox home opener with new lease on life

CHICAGO (CBS) — Hall-of-Famer Harold Baines will be back at Guaranteed Rate Field for the White Sox home opener on Tuesday.

Baines also has a new lease on life after receiving both a heart and kidney transplant 11 months ago at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore.

“I’m grateful. It wasn’t easy. But the nurses and the doctors made it to the point where I was comfortable to be here without worrying about the next day. They took care of me every day,” Baines said in a video posted by the White Sox, “and I’m very grateful.”

The Sox just revealed the news that Baines needed the transplants after discovering he had familial amyloidosis, a hereditary condition affecting his organs.

MLB.com explained that he learned four of five years ago that he had the condition, from which his father died. The condition causes the production of amyloid protein that forms into an abnormal shape – and which can then be deposited in nerves and other organs and harm organs or tissues as they build up.

Baines played 22 years in the major leagues finishing with .289 batting average and 2,866 hits.