Buzzie Bavasi dead at 93

He built World Series teams in Brooklyn, L.A.; Tulowitzki out at least 6 weeks

May 2, 2008

Buzzie Bavasi, who built Dodgers teams that won four World Series titles in Brooklyn and Los Angeles, died yesterday at his home in La Jolla, outside San Diego. He was 93.

His death was announced by the Seattle Mariners, whose general manager is Bill Bavasi, a son of the former Dodgers general manager.

Emil Joseph Bavasi - nicknamed Buzzie by his mother for the way he buzzed around as a kid - helped put together Dodgers teams included future Hall of Famers Jackie Robinson, Duke Snider, Pee Wee Reese, Roy Campanella, Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale.

Bavasi was later part owner and president of the San Diego Padres, then executive vice president of the California Angels. With the Dodgers, he played a role in Robinson's breaking the color barrier in the major leagues.

Bavasi spent 44 years working in baseball, including 34 in the major leagues. He began as a traveling secretary and publicity director for the Dodgers in Brooklyn in 1939.

After serving in various posts for the team, he was promoted to GM before the 1951 season.

During his tenure as GM from 1951 to 1968, first in Brooklyn and then Los Angeles, the Dodgers won eight National League pennants. They won their only World Series in Brooklyn in 1955. After the move west, the Dodgers won the World Series in 1959, 1963 and 1965 with Bavasi as GM.

• Rockies // Star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki suffered a torn tendon in his left quadriceps and could be out until the All-Star break if not longer, his agent said. "Best case scenario is six weeks. The realistic one is a few months," agent Paul Cohen said. Cohen said team doctors will have a better feel for a timeline next week after "massive swelling and bleeding" subside. Tulowitzki, the runner-up for Rookie of the Year last season, was hitting .152 with one homer and 11 RBIs in 105 at-bats. Clint Barmes, the Rockies' starting shortstop in 2005 and '06, will fill in.

• Yankees // Phil Hughes has a stress fracture in one of his ribs, and the pitcher is expected to be sidelined until at least July. Hughes, expected to be a key member of New York's rotation, is 0-4 with a 9.00 ERA in six starts this year.

• Braves // Right-hander John Smoltz, who already went from starter to closer to starter again, is planning to go back to the bullpen once he comes off the 15-day disabled list. Though surgery wasn't prescribed for Smoltz, who has an inflamed biceps tendon and rotator cuff, he seems resigned to pitching the rest of the year in some pain. That apparently led him to conclude the bullpen was his best option. Smoltz is the only pitcher in baseball history with at least 200 wins and 150 saves.

• Clemens // The owner of a weight-loss center told a Houston television station that he was questioned Monday by federal authorities investigating Roger Clemens for perjury. Shaun Kelley, the owner of Shaun Kelley Weight Loss in Houston, told Fox affiliate KRIV that he was given a polygraph test by FBI agents about his relationship with Clemens. "They asked me if I've ever given him human growth hormone or performance-enhancing drugs, and I said no," Kelley said in a story posted Wednesday on the station's Web site. "I passed it ... trust me."

• Canseco // Jose Canseco, a former American League Most Valuable Player who made millions during his baseball career, has had his home foreclosed. Canseco told the syndicated TV show Inside Edition that he walked away from his $2.5 million, 7,300-square foot home in suburban Encino because it didn't make sense to continue making payments. He also said a couple of divorces cost him $7 million or $8 million.