The End of Varsity Baseball at the UO

After months of deliberations, University President Paul Olum announced on Thursday, May 7, 1981 that baseball, along with men’s gymnastics and two women’s sports—golf and soccer—would be eliminated from the school’s athletic program because of budget reductions. "Either way,"sighed Mel Krause, "whether the sport was kept or dropped, I was told there would be no scholarship money."In other comments to the Register-Guard, Krause added that he really didn’t think the purpose of the baseball program was to be nationally competitive.

According to Krause, the major causes of baseball’s demise were inflation and Title IX. "The cost of equipment, travel, motels and food have skyrocketed,"he said. "And with the addition of as many women’s programs and no income coming back from those programs, it’s been a tough load to take on."Ray Hawk, University Vice President for Administration and Finance, said that, "These are the cuts that needed to be made to cut the budget and to keep the men’s and women’s programs on a parity level."All in all, the athletic department’s proposed 1981-1982 budget of $4,431,273 was slashed by $945,803.

http://libweb.uoregon.edu/exhibits/baseball/uo-end.html
April 27, 2004
Maintained by Ted Smith