Because of significant budget cuts that are being felt by every educational institution in the state, the Cal Golden Bears are set to cut their varsity baseball team.

The announcement of severe cuts to athletic programs was made back in September, when Cal stated they would be cutting five teams from their program: women’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s gymnastics, and baseball. Additionally, men’s rugby was to be made a club sport and, like the aforementioned athletics teams, would no longer represent UC Berkeley in intercollegiate competition. The decision was met with public outrage and concern for the future of Cal athletics. Since that announcement, UC Berkeley has reported that it will be able to reinstate all its programs (due to increased donations) except men’s gymnastics and baseball.

The university received a 20 % cut in state funding last year, and the athletic program found itself $4 million over budget annually because of these cuts. Rather than reducing every program, the university believed it was better to cut a small number of teams so the rest could thrive. This decision is worrisome for many community college athletes, even those who won’t attend UC Berkeley.

Athletic programs (especially large ones like baseball) are rarely the first thing on the chopping block when a school faces budget cuts, desperate times call for desperate measures. It is no secret that universities and community colleges alike are feeling the impact of our state’s extreme deficit, and it wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility for other universities to follow Berkeley’s lead.

The Skyline View learned in a previous interview with baseball coach Dino Nomicos that 95 percent of Skyline baseball players go on to play at a four-year college, but the future of these programs at California public universities could be at risk.

All hope is not lost, however. When Cal made the announcement it would be cutting five programs, they did so with the expectation that donations would not increase dramatically enough to sustain these sports. Since then, they have received $1 million in cash donations and over $11 million in pledged donations. Because of this, Cal has made good progress towards the $25 million it says it will need to keep all five programs, and with the existing donations have been able to cover the costs for three out of five of the teams that were initially going to be cut. The future of Cal baseball is questionable, but the program could be salvaged with donations from fans, alumni and other sources. With any luck, due to the outrage over UC Berkeley’s decision, other universities and community colleges will be able to keep their sports teams.