Cal Cuts Baseball, Demotes Rugby in Budget Move

The budget crisis in the state of California has reached into the world of collegiate athletics.

The University of California announced Tuesday that it will eliminate baseball, men's and women's gymnastics and women's lacrosse teams after this year. In addition, the men's rugby team -- perennial national champions -- will no longer be fully funded and will be regarded as a "varsity club sport."

The cuts are part of an effort to build a "sustainable" athletic program in a time of unprecedented budget shortfalls, said University chancellor Robert J. Birgeneau.

"Athletics deserve our appropriate support," Birgeneau said. "But costs have been rising and they are not sustainable in the face of drastic budget cuts on campus."

The number of varsity sports at Cal will be reduced from 29 to 24. The reductions impact a total of 163 student-athletes as well as 13 full-time coaches. Birgeneau said the eliminations will generate an estimated savings of $4 million a year for the athletic program. Birgeneau also said no further sports will be cut, but that he expects institutional support for athletics will be reduced to $5 million by fiscal year 2014. Cal's athletic department budget for 2010 is a reported $69 million.

The university will honor existing athletic scholarships for athletes whose programs will be eliminated and will support those who wish to transfer.

"Cal athletics are not immune to the recession or the financial realities facing our campus," Barbour said. "Our reliance on campus support must be reduced."
-- Cal athletic director Sandy Barbour Athletic director Sandy Barbour said it was a "painful day."

"Cal athletics are not immune to the recession or the financial realities facing our campus," Barbour said. "Our reliance on campus support must be reduced."

The Cal baseball program has a history that dates back to 1892, winning national titles in 1947 and 1957. The Bears, whose baseball alums include Lance Blankenship, Jeff Kent, Darren Lewis and Bob Melvin, finished fifth in the Pac-10 last season.

The elimination of the men's gymnastics team leaves Stanford as the only Pac-10 school with a men's program.

Rugby, which has won 25 national championships in 30 years, will no longer be considered an intercollegiate sport at Cal, but will be able to remain in its current competitive situation. It has been given a "varsity club" status, a new designation by the university and will have to rely on endowments and donor support to maintain its current level of competition.

Tuesday's announcement ends a year-long process of budget review that included an outcry from a panel of university professors and alumni critical of how much the university was spending on athletics while students saw continuous, significant increases in fees and tuition.

Cal will likely see its athletic revenues increase as part of the new Pac-12 Conference next year, with the conference set to add a football championship game and a new television contract that could also include a television network.

Pac-10 commissioner Larry Scott issued a statement Tuesday afternoon.

"I know this was an extremely difficult decision for Cal given their tremendous commitment to a broad-based sports program, which has been one of the largest in the country," Scott said. "Unfortunately, today's announcement highlights what is at stake due to the significant financial pressure schools and athletic departments are under. It also reinforces the importance for our Conference to continue an aggressive effort to increase support and opportunities for our schools and student-athletes in the future."

Barbour would not discuss the possibility that any of the sports could be reinstated and said that the decision was made to cut sports rather than make more broad cuts across the entire department.