Californiagoldenblogs.com is reporting that the Cal baseball program, one of several set to be shut down at the end of this school year, apparently has been saved. Commitments totaling $9 million of the required $10 million were presented to Chancellor Robert Birgeneau yesterday by Stu Gordon, a former Golden Bear pitcher and leader of the fundraising effort. In light of the fact that the funds raised remain about 10 percent short of the previously identified $10 million goal, donors and the campus administration have agreed that the team’s formal reinstatement will be announced once the $10 million target is met through continued fund raising. It appears that a vote of confidence, even an "unofficial" one, from the administration will be the boost that gets Bear baseball the last 10% of the way. It's a good thing the conference will need to deal with the scheduling issues the Pac-11 will present, which should not be too severe; some teams already are using 10 weeks to play 9 series this season, so a rotation plan for a non-conference weekend series should be doable. Cal, currently ranked 13th. nationally, and tied for first place in the Pac-10 with a 5-1 conference record, has been playing great baseball this year under, or maybe because of, the threat of their program being shut down.