Mel Krause (February 4, 1928 – June 13, 2008) was an American

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

coach and player at the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

. He also played professional baseball in the

Northwest League The Northwest League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Northwestern United States and Western Canada. A Class A Short Season league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseba ...

. Krause also played college basketball for Oregon and coached two different high school basketball teams to Oregon state basketball championships. Prior to its planned reinstatement in 2009, Krause was the last Ducks baseball coach when the university canceled the sport in 1981.

Early life and playing career

Krause grew up in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

. He attended Commerce High School (now Cleveland High School) where he played football, basketball, and baseball and was named to All-City teams in all three sports. After graduating from high school, Krause attended the

, where he played baseball and basketball. He pursued a professional baseball career, playing in the minor-league

for the

Salem Senators The Salem Senators are the longest lasting name used by several minor league baseball teams based in Salem in the U.S. state of Oregon. The team name derived from Salem being the capital of Oregon. The team was founded in 1940. The current inca ...

from 1954 to 1956 and the

Eugene Emeralds The Eugene Emeralds (nicknamed the Ems) are a Minor League Baseball team in the northwest United States, based in Eugene, Oregon. The Emeralds are members of the Northwest League and the High-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Eugene plays ...

from 1957 to 1961.

Coaching career

Following his graduation from Oregon, Krause began coaching high school sports in 1952 at Milwaukie High School in

Milwaukie, Oregon Milwaukie is a city mostly in Clackamas County, Oregon, Clackamas County, Oregon, United States; a very small portion of the city extends into Multnomah County, Oregon, Multnomah County. The population was 21,119 at the 2020 United States Census, ...

. He coached two high school basketball teams to the Oregon state basketball championship: Franklin High School in 1956 and

North Eugene High School North Eugene High School is a public high school in the River Road/Santa Clara neighborhoods of Eugene, Oregon, United States. History Source: North Eugene High School opened to students on October 21, 1957. The opening was delayed nearly two m ...

in 1963. He also coached Sheldon High School's baseball team to a State runner-up finish in 1966. In 1968 Krause moved to the college coaching ranks when he became the first head coach of the Lane Community College Men's Basketball team. In two seasons at Lane, Mel compiled a 31–13 record (14–6 in 1968–69 and 17–7 in 1969–70). In addition to being the head coach of Men's Basketball, Mel helped the school start a varsity baseball program in 1969. While he was working as an assistant baseball coach to Irv Roth, the inaugural 1969–70 baseball team advanced to the NJCAA Region 18 tournament. In 1970 Krause was named head baseball coach at Oregon, replacing his former coach, Don Kirsch. In 11 seasons, Krause's teams won two

Pacific-8 Conference The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level for all sports, and its football teams compete in the Football Bowl ...

Northern Division championships (1972 and 1974). In 1981, due to budgetary concerns, the university dropped its baseball program along with several other sports. Krause returned to high school coaching, ending his coaching career at

Newberg High School Newberg High School (NHS) is the only public high school in Newberg, Oregon, United States. It is a part of Newberg-Dundee Public Schools. History The current campus is Newberg High School's third location. The first campus (1911-36) The origin ...

in 1992. Following his coaching career, he worked as a baseball

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement ** Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

for the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

and

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

Illness and death

In November 2007, Krause was diagnosed with

acute myeloid leukemia Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a cancer of the myeloid line of blood cells, characterized by the rapid growth of abnormal cells that build up in the bone marrow and blood and interfere with haematopoiesis, normal blood cell production. Sympt ...

and given two to six months to live. Shortly before his diagnosis, the University of Oregon announced that they would be reinstating baseball for the 2009 season, and subsequently built a new baseball stadium,

PK Park PK Park is a baseball stadium in the northwest United States, located in Eugene, Oregon. It is the home field of the University of Oregon Ducks of the Big Ten Conference, and the MILB Eugene Emeralds of the Northwest League. The Ducks' program w ...

, with the main entrance named for Krause. Krause died of the disease at his

Wilsonville, Oregon Wilsonville is a city in Clackamas County, Oregon, Clackamas and Washington County, Oregon, Washington counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. Founded with the name Boones Landing for the Boones Ferry that crossed the Willamette River, the communit ...

home on June 13, 2008. He is survived by his wife, Jan, and four children.

Legacy

Krause is a member of the Portland Interscholastic League Sports Hall of Fame, the

Oregon Sports Hall of Fame The Oregon Sports Hall of Fame honors Oregon athletes, teams, coaches, and others who have made a significant contribution to sports in Oregon. The first class was inducted in 1980, with new inductees added in the fall. Operated by the Oregon Sports ...

, The Northwest Athletic Conference Hall of Fame and the University of Oregon Athletic Hall of Fame.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Krause, Mel 1928 births 2008 deaths Oregon Ducks baseball coaches Oregon Ducks baseball players Deaths from leukemia in Oregon People from Wilsonville, Oregon Cleveland High School (Portland, Oregon) alumni Salem Senators players Baseball players from Portland, Oregon 20th-century American sportsmen