60 Years of Golden Era Impact

Under the Golden Era Committee criteria, Buzzie Bavasi is a six-tool candidate for the Hall of Fame.

1. Record. Bavasi’s statistics alone qualify him for the Hall of Fame. They are competitive with current Hall of Fame executives.
2. Ability. Bavasi built dynamic front office organizations for three major-league franchises over 33 years (1951–1984). His greatest success came during the Golden Era, when he operated effectively throughout baseball’s evolution from integration to West Coast expansion.
3. Integrity. Bavasi served the game memorably by welcoming black players into organized baseball at a pivotal moment in baseball history.  It took integration – and the efforts of people like Bavasi—to make the Golden Era true to its name.
4. Sportsmanship. Bavasi put the organizations he worked for first. Throughout his life, he mentored countless protégées, including many future Hall of Famers, to do the same.
5. Character. Bavasi’s handshake was as good as his word. He did not simply work in baseball, he served the game. His humanity toward unsung rookies and the giants of the game epitomizes the highest ideals of the Hall of Fame.
6. Contribution to the game. Bavasi’s legacy is found in the announcers, scouts, coaches, managers, and executives who continue to work in baseball. It is found in the black players who went on to thrive in the game. And it is found in the continuing successes of the three Southern California franchises he guided. Part of his legacy, however, remains intangible. Baseball is unique among professional sports because it transcends statistics—it is about the unforgettable personalities who make the game immortal. Buzzie Bavasi’s stories are told and retold—and keeping baseball alive and memorable is the purpose of the Hall of Fame.

Seventh Tool

Buzzie Bavasi has a seventh tool—his longevity in the game. He served baseball for sixty years (1939–1999).

• Bavasi’s longevity is second only to Clark Griffith and Connie Mack among all Major League Baseball executives.
• Bavasi’s 60 years in the game is unmatched among his contemporaries.
  • Bill Veeck, 45 years
  • George Weiss, 35 years
  • Charles Finley, 20 years
• The Sporting News 1959 Major League Executive of the Year.
• 2005 Ray Boone Baseball Family Award.
• Member, National Baseball Hall of Fame Veterans Committee (1978-1999).

“Buzzie Bavasi is the top man in his trade. It isn’t often that ballplayers rave about a front-office figure, but they are nuts about Buzzie. He is their confidant, counselor and friend.” 
—Arthur Daley in The New York Times, 1963
 
“Buzzie is a guy with great integrity. He has a good sense of humor and he’s a very warm person. He has a lot of character. And it’s pretty obvious from what the Dodgers have done what kind of general manager he is.” 
—Chub Feeney, San Francisco Giants GM, quoted in the Los Angeles Times, 1967
 
“The formula for baseball success is simple: If the GM is good, the team is, too. If he’s not, fourth place here we come. It’s not easy. A baseball general manager has to be shrewd, manipulative, sensitive and thick-skinned at the same time, as was Buzzie Bavasi. One of the best.”
—Jim Murray in the Los Angeles Times, 1987

“Buzzie always remained more than a friend—he was an advisor—and I still think of him quite often.  He was one of the kindest and most benevolent of men.  Was Buzzie good for baseball?  That’s an easy one to answer.”
—Mike Port, former GM, California Angels and Boston Red Sox