Towson baseball deserves better fate

The demise of Towson University baseball is testimony to the sad reality of college athletics ("Angry coach says officials kept quiet about folding team," Oct. 4). It's not about what is best for the student, the full experience of college, the growth of the young people. It's about chasing the dollar.

The baseball program has prospered at Towson University despite the lack of support or acknowledgment from the administration. It has been the hard work of one man, the coach, who has authored the success and reputation it has realized. Coach Mike Gottlieb has been a one-man show for decades now. He toils all day on the field and in the field house at night teaching baseball and life skills. His is the scouting program, scouring for undersized or underappreciated talent, often local (gasp) talent, which may not pop the eyeballs out of larger schools' programs. He has brought in good players, more importantly good young men, monitored their academic achievement and helped them overachieve on the field.

I've enjoyed viewing their exploits from the sunny hillside surrounding the field and read about their success in the sports pages, not on the police blotters where too many other "student-athletes" have landed. His singular efforts have enriched hundreds of young men, made their college careers more memorable and effectively prepared them for life after college and baseball. His program has earned the respect of other larger, better-supported programs with whom he competes.

The baseball program at Towson University has enhanced the reputation of that institution. Their games are enjoyed by other students, by friends and families of the players, by the community and by fans of the National Pastime. Is that not enough to ensure its future?

Robert Dubansky, Stevenson