Bavasi

Your article on Angel General Manager Bill Bavasi [July 30] left me laughing. I am not qualified to rate him, but you quoted agent Scott Boras as saying Bill is "one of the best." Because Mr. Boras is concerned only with having player salaries rise so his clients can receive grossly overpaid contracts, his opinion is so biased as to not rate any value. No one cares what an agent thinks. No one believes them anyway. ROD CLARIDA Brea

FRED HANEY (1960-68): Haney selected future Angels All-Stars Jim Fregosi and pitcher Dean Chance. DICK WALSH (1968-71): Best known for firing Bill Rigney, at the time, the only manager the Angels had ever had. HARRY DALTON (1971-77): Acquired Nolan Ryan from the New York Mets. BUZZIE BAVASI (1977-84): Led the Angels into free agency, signing a multitude of big names. MIKE PORT (1984-91): Was GM for heartbreaking 1986 ALCS against Red Sox. DAN O'BRIEN (1991-93)

Gary DiSarcina smiled at the memory. One year ago today, with the Angels and Seattle Mariners jousting for the playoff spot reserved for the American League West champions, the Angels traded for pitcher Ken Hill. "It was a huge lift," DiSarcina said. "He's a No. 1, No. 2 type of guy. Knowing we could get him and [Chuck] Finley out there was a big morale boost." DiSarcina and his Angel teammates sure could use another pitching boost today.

He used to set up the bat boy and bat girl promotions. He moved boxes and had players sign baseballs for charity. He helped design outfits for mascots. A decade and a half after he was hired by the Angels as an intern, Tony Reagins, at age 40, became the club's 10th general manager Tuesday. Reagins, an African American, becomes the third minority general manager in baseball, joining Ken Williams of the Chicago White Sox and Omar Minaya of the New York Mets.

It's beginning to look like the best course of action for the Angels this off-season is to do as little as possible. Unless the Florida Marlins are on the phone. The Angels would be better off doing nothing than making some of the head-shaking moves other teams made this week. I still would like to see them make a strong run at Houston free-agent pitcher Darryl Kile, but Angel General Manager Bill Bavasi said Thursday you can pretty much rule that out.

Bill Bavasi's defining moves as general manager of the Angels: THE BEST * Signed young players Garret Anderson, Gary DiSarcina, Jim Edmonds, Darin Erstad, Troy Percival and Tim Salmon to long-term contracts, saving the Angels about $10 million this season alone. * Persuaded Disney to invest in international scouting. Without it, the Angels lacked any surplus for trades or any sizable margin of error in player development.

Angel Manager Terry Collins and General Manager Bill Bavasi will speak at a monthly newsmakers lunch at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Pond. The luncheons are sponsored by the Orange County Sports Hall of Fame, Anaheim Chamber of Commerce and the Orange County Sports Assn. Tickets are $20 and reservations are suggested. For more information, call (714) 758-0222.

Bill Bavasi is thin as a marathon runner and if he has a resting pulse, sometimes you would need your own thumb on his wrist to feel the proof. Bavasi, the Angels' general manager, says he wants to live his life on an even keel, "never too high and never too low," and so he cannot be prodded into any expressions of anger or despair, sadness or discouragement or just plain old fedupwithitness, if we can create a word here.

The Baltimore Orioles received permission Thursday night to interview Bill Bavasi, the Dodgers' director of player development, for the Orioles' general manager job. Bavasi said he plans to discuss the opportunity with his family before responding to Baltimore's request by today.

Bill Bavasi, fired by the Angels last year for not building a pennant-winning team quickly enough, wasn't surprised the U.S. team he helped pick won the Olympic gold medal. "I don't have a reason to feel vindicated, because we knew what we were getting into," said Bavasi, who picked the roster along with former Yankee general manager Bob Watson. ". . .We also knew we had real good pitching and a pretty good club overall." U.S.

From his hilltop hacienda, with the shimmering Pacific Ocean stretching to the horizon, it is easier to accept that on some days you really can see forever -- easier to believe that forever is his reasonable destination. After all, at 90, Buzzie Bavasi is a long way on the journey, still active in mind and body, a cane needed only occasionally, the driver's license still valid.

Bill Bavasi, who assembled the core of the Angels' World Series championship roster but resigned before the talent reached fruition, is expected to be introduced today as general manager of the Seattle Mariners.

The Baltimore Orioles received permission Thursday night to interview Bill Bavasi, the Dodgers' director of player development, for the Orioles' general manager job. Bavasi said he plans to discuss the opportunity with his family before responding to Baltimore's request by today.

A familiar name in Dodger history reappeared Tuesday when Bill Bavasi was hired as director of player development, joining the franchise his father guided during its most successful era. Bavasi, whose father, Buzzie, served as general manager of the Dodgers from 1950-68, returns to the major leagues after having resigned as general manager of the Angels in 1999.

Bill Bavasi, fired by the Angels last year for not building a pennant-winning team quickly enough, wasn't surprised the U.S. team he helped pick won the Olympic gold medal. "I don't have a reason to feel vindicated, because we knew what we were getting into," said Bavasi, who picked the roster along with former Yankee general manager Bob Watson. ". . .We also knew we had real good pitching and a pretty good club overall." U.S.

It is meant as no disrespect to General Manager Bill Stoneman or Manager Mike Scioscia, who were shrewd enough to realize that the biggest change the Angels needed to make was in the environment. But make no mistake: The gritty Angels, with their volatile offense, surprising young pitching and impressive array of home-grown talent, are a tribute to former general manager Bill Bavasi and his scouting director, Bob Fontaine.

Cecil Fielder, who was designated for assignment by the Angels on Aug. 5, signed with Indians last week and said he thought finances might have had something to do with the Angels' decision to cut him loose. "I don't think it was just what was happening on the field," said Fielder, who was hitting .241 with 17 home runs and 68 runs batted in. Fielder said his agents had a "gentlemen's agreement" about some unspecified incentive clauses that were close to kicking in.

If four years is enough time for a college to pass out a diploma to a student, it's certainly enough time to pass judgment on a general manager. Bill Bavasi knows this. He knows the Angels have his stamp all over them and that their performance is a reflection on him. "I've been here now long enough where if this works, I feel good," Bavasi said. "If this doesn't work, then, hey, it's my fault." By October, he'll either be taking bows or dodging tomatoes.

If Don Baylor, the Atlanta Braves' hitting coach and hottest ticket on baseball's bustling managerial market, is a candidate for the Angels' vacancy, it is news to him. "I know I'm being mentioned as a candidate there, but I don't feel that I am," Baylor said Thursday after the Braves worked out in preparation for Saturday's opening game of the World Series against the New York Yankees. "I mean, I'm pretty much in the dark as far as that situation is concerned."

Loyalty is to be admired, but is there loyalty to a fault? This was at the heart of the philosophical differences between Angel President Tony Tavares and Bill Bavasi, ultimately prompting Bavasi to resign as general manager Friday. Tavares, in response to one of the most embarrassing seasons in the history of an organization that has experienced more than one, feels wholesale changes are necessary--on and off the field. Bavasi wasn't prepared to deal in wholesale.