FOR ANGELS' BAVASI, BASEBALL RUNS THICKER THAN BLOOD.

Byline: Joe Haakenson

You might say Bill Bavasi was born to be a major-league general manager, but you would get an argument - from Bavasi.

Buzzie Bavasi was the general manager of the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers and the Angels and was president of the San Diego Padres. So Bill, the youngest of Buzzie's four sons, has baseball in his blood.

But Bill Bavasi is quick to point out it takes more than blood to stick around in the game. It's all about winning, and if you don't, you'll be replaced.

Bavasi admits, however, that being the son of a general manager had its advantages. There were the times he and his brothers would sneak into the Dodgers clubhouse and talk to coaches like Don Zimmer and Joe Amalfitano.

They had to sneak because Buzzie didn't allow the boys to run wild at the ballpark.

``We weren't allowed in the clubhouse,'' said Bavasi, 41, who is beginning his sixth season as the Angels general manager. ``I allow my kids (Kyle, 11, and Katie, 9) in the clubhouse only in selected times. He had his reasons, but I never asked him. But he'd get angry if we were in the clubhouse. Mostly we went to see the equipment manager or the trainers and coaches. They were good guys.''

``It was the players' clubhouse, that was their domain,'' Buzzie explained. ``If I let my kids in the clubhouse, what about Duke Snider's kids, or Carl Furillo's? In my day, we let the players make the rules. At least I did. And they said no kids.''

At home, however, the rules were like any ``normal'' household. Bavasi grew up in La Jolla and played basketball in high school and at the University of San Diego.

``I was going to play in the NBA, but a lack of talent nixed that. I probably peaked in the sixth grade,'' Bavasi said.

It was baseball that was always there for him. And he took advantage of the opportunity.

``I grew up in and around the game because of my parents,'' he said. ``To get in the game, my family helped. To say it's anything other than who you know is a lie. For me it was more my dad's relationship with (then-Padres vice president) Red Patterson. Red pushed to hire me.

``Who I knew got me in, but the same relationships get you out if you do a poor job.''

Bavasi started working in the operations department for the Padres in 1974 at age 16 and was promoted to the grounds crew in 1975. In 1980 he joined the Angels as a minor-league administrator, became director of minor-league operations in 1984 and held that position for nine years.

In 1993, Bavasi was named GM Whitey Herzog's assistant, a position he held until Jan. 12, 1994, when he was named GM.

Bavasi, though, said it was never his goal to become a general manager. He admits he never imagined any line of work other than one in baseball, but it has always been a matter of dealing with the job at hand.

``There are certain aspects of running an organization that are appealing,'' Bavasi said. ``But as a farm director, I didn't aspire to be a GM. I aspired to be the best farm director I could be. Right now, my goal is to be the best GM I can be.

``I see farm directors operate solely to become a GM and I find it disgusting. I can't stand guys like that. They're not going to respond in a way that is best for the organization; These guys respond in a way that's best for them. It damages the organization.''

Bavasi's brothers - Peter, Chris and Bob - are all involved in the business of sports or politics. But Bavasi said the household wasn't one that demanded perfection from them.

``I'm thankful and lucky to have grown up in a household where I could just be a kid,'' Bavasi said. ``A lot of kids aren't that lucky. There wasn't pressure to accomplish or succeed or make a mark.''

It was the goal of Buzzie and his wife of 58 years, Evit, to make things as normal as possible.

``I guess we never thought of it as anything else,'' Evit Bavasi said. ``We have four wonderful sons. We were both raised in normal households, so we knew no other way.''

``We never really pushed (baseball),'' Buzzie said. ``We let them do whatever they wanted to do, and they were interested in other things.

``The one we thought might be interested was Chris. He was the athlete. But he never got involved in baseball.''

Bavasi has an advantage over other general managers: He can go to his father for advice on being a general manager. However, both Bill and Buzzie admit that times have changed so much that Buzzie won't always have the answers.

``The game hasn't changed, people have changed,'' Buzzie said. ``I don't think I could operate a club today. I enjoyed the association with the players. But today, association with the players means you like 'em, and then you'll have to pay them more.

``Billy has the perfect personality to do it today. I like the fact that he doesn't tell you people (reporters) what he's going to do before he does it. That youngster Kevin Malone (the Dodgers GM) talks all the time. It's going to backfire on him. Billy has the personality to get along with the present-day ballplayer. He knows the score.''

Besides, Buzzie enjoys just being a fan these days.

``I watched 247 games last year on the (satellite) dish,'' Buzzie said. ``Mostly Angels games. Once a Dodger, always a Dodger, but my heart is with the Angels. You know, blood is thicker than water.''

A CLOSER LOOK

Who: Bill Bavasi

What: Angels vice president and general manager

Age: 41

Resume: Named club's executive vice president and general manager Jan. 12, 1994. Is the Angels' eighth general manager. . . . His father, E.J. ``Buzzie'' Bavasi was Angels GM from 1977-1984. . . . Father Buzzie was also GM of the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers and president of the San Diego Padres. . . . Bavasi went from the ground up in baseball. While working for the Padres, he was promoted to the grounds crew in 1975, where he worked for four seasons. . . . Began his Angels career as a minor-league administrator in 1980 and was appointed director of minor-league operations Jan. 24, 1984. . . . Working with director of scouting Bob Fontaine, Bavasi was responsible for an Angels system that developed Wally Joyner, Chuck Finley, Tim Salmon, Kirk McCaskill, Gary DiSarcina and Devon White. . . . Bavasi has a wife, Tracy, and they have two children, Kyle and Katie.

CAPTION(S):

Photo, Box

PHOTO (Color) ``To get in the game, my family helped. To say it's anything other than who you know is a lie. . . . Who I knew got me in, but the same relationships get you out if you do a poor job.''

- Bill Bavasi

BOX: A CLOSER LOOK (see text)