Editor’s note: This editorial was written following a 16-7 Webfoot (Ducks) victory over the Aggies of Oregon Agriculture College — now the Beavers of Oregon State University — in one of the biggest baseball games of 1928.
The embryo lawyers and journalists clashed yesterday with swinging bats and howls of joy. The would-be barristers won the game and are temporarily acknowledged the better crew of diamond athletics.
It was some game. The losers shed no bitter tears of regret, nor did they show concern over the victors’ loud crowings of glee. To the devotee of science in sport, the game could have passed for nothing short of the classification of rotten. To the lover of sport for sport’s sake, it was just about the best ever.
Amateur sport with all the fun and fumbles of a real amateur contest; such was the game. Amateur from the rusty gate swings of inexperienced batters to the decisions of Umpires Turnbull and Rosson. The most professional aspect of the entire session was the “razzing” from the crowd in the bleachers.
Amateur sport has been losing its hold on the American people, we hear said frequently. The very awareness with which the average man performs when endeavoring to take part in a chance athletic game bears out the truth of the statement. We venture the guess that it is the increasing demand that all players perform with the polished smoothness of the professional athlete, coupled with the idea that a victory and not the joy of competition is the end in view, that has brought about the decline of amateur sports. The athlete who closest approaches the machine in performance wins our applause. We worship perfection and fail to see the joyous spirit of play which motivates the whole idea of sports.
The participant unquestioningly gets the most good out of sports. As long as we continue to devote all our time to worship of the most nearly perfect athletes, we will continue to get less and less from sports for our standards constantly become more rigid. Amateur sports participated in by simon-pure athletes and novices will keep team sports alive and full of interest. Intramural and departmental contests are a great help in spreading fun and health on the campus. There can well be more of them.