One of the sharpest coaching minds to come out of the state, Mel Krause (February 4, 1928 – June 13, 2008) was committed to leadership in both the high school and college ranks.
Krause was a three-sport athlete at Portland’s Commerce (now Cleveland) High School, gaining All-City recognition in football, basketball and baseball and graduating in 1946.
As an athlete at the University of Oregon, he earned varsity letters in basketball and baseball. He played guard on the basketball team and outfield in baseball. Mel graduated in 1951 and signed with the Philadelphia Phillies, in pursuit of a baseball career. He would spend 8 years in the minor leagues in Salem and Eugene.
In 1952 Krause also began his coaching career in Oregon high schools. He coached baseball and basketball at Milwaukie, then moved back to the tough PIL and led Franklin basketball to a state championship. He moved back to Eugene and won another hoops title 1963, giving North Eugene its first state championship in any sport. His last high school stop was Sheldon, the Irish finished state runner-up in 1966. Mel helped organize and direct the Oregon High School All-Star baseball series. In 1963, he received the Rollie Truitt Award for his contribution to amateur baseball in the state.
Next stop: Community College, where Krause started a baseball program from scratch in 1968. He also coached the basketball team and served as athletic director.
In 1970, Mel was named to replace his mentor, Don Kirsch, as head coach at the University of Oregon. The Ducks won two Northern Division titles during his tenure which ended abruptly when the school dropped the program in 1981. Mel didn't stop, he spent one more year in high school coaching back at Milwaukie and served as a professional baseball scout for the San Francisco Giants, Philadelphia Phillies and Los Angeles Dodgers.
Mel spent 27 years working to get the baseball program reinstated at Oregon and was part of the planning for the revived team including the design of PK Park, the Ducks home field.
Retired as Head of Athletics and Physical Education at Portland Community College. He spent a brief time as part of a very entertaining duo with fellow hall of famer Jack Dunn announcing high school baseball on TV.
Mel Krause is a member of the University of Oregon, Northwest Athletic Conference (formerly NWAAC) and PIL halls of fame. He has a monument in his honor outside PK Park in Eugene.