This Brett a Franchise Player, Too : Business: Bobby Brett is not as famous as his brothers, but he has found success as managing partner of two sports teams.

Bobby Brett, a Hermosa Beach businessman and resident, doesn’t mind being known as the brother of Kansas City Royals hitting standout George Brett and Angels play-by-play announcer Ken Brett.

He has found his own niche with the help of his more famous brothers.

“I’m the Jerry Buss of Spokane, Washington,” he said.

Brett, with the support and participation of his brothers, two of the South Bay’s most famous athletes, is the managing partner of two professional sports teams in the eastern Washington city, the Spokane Indians of the Class A Northwest League and the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey League. The Bretts have owned the Indians since 1986 and took control of the Chiefs on May 2.

The South Bay entrepreneur and his brothers also own controlling interest in the Class A Riverside Red Wave of the California League.

Business and pleasure helped motivate Brett, 38, to a career in professional sports management.

“The business of sport is really fun,” he said from Spokane, a city of about 500,000 people.

Brett is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the league-leading Indians and is overseeing the reorganization of the Chiefs, who will start their first season under the Bretts’ control on Sept. 28.

His typical activity during a home game at 8,300-seat Indians Stadium is spent nervously in the press box, hot dog or hamburger in one hand, score card in the other, while listening to a radio broadcast of the game.

On a late July weekend, when the Indians were playing on the road, Brett paid to have the Portland Beavers and Colorado Springs Sky Sox of the triple-A Pacific Coast League play their four-game series in Spokane.

Although the Indians were away, Brett remained tuned to the Indians’ game on radio. He informed the stadium’s public-address announcer on the team’s score from Bellingham, Wash., who in turn updated the 2,000 fans.

Brett said he isn’t looking to upgrade his baseball team to a higher league, he just wanted to bring baseball to Spokane on a weekend when the home team was away.

Spokane has a history of supporting baseball. It was home to the Dodgers’ top minor-league affiliate from 1958 to 1971. The Seattle Mariners

and Milwaukee Brewers have since had their top farm clubs at Spokane. Brett’s Indians are affiliated with the San Diego Padres.

The budget-conscious Brett is able to use the baseball team’s administrative staff to run the hockey operations.

“It was tough to hire and keep good people working for our baseball team, because we didn’t have anything to keep them occupied after baseball and would have to lay them off,” he said. “But there are no schedule conflicts between baseball and hockey, and with both sports, we have a way to hire better people and keep them occupied and working for us throughout the entire year.”

The baseball team starts play in early June and is finished in September. The hockey team begins its 72-game schedule in late September.

With the Bretts’ background in baseball--all four, including oldest brother John, were standouts at El Segundo High--it’s no surprise that Bobby has put together three consecutive Northwest League championship teams since taking over the Indians four years ago.

Bobby has worked closely with George--a former American League batting champion--and Ken, who pitched for 12 years in the major leagues before starting his broadcast career.

Can Bobby transfer his baseball success to hockey? He thinks he can, but right now he’s learning about the sport.

“I’ve only been on skates once in my life,’ Brett said. “I’ve been more of a casual fan of the sport, as compared to baseball.”

Earl Gerheim, a sportswriter with the Spokane Spokesman-Review for the past 11 years, has covered the hockey and baseball teams and likes the operation Brett has put together.

“Brett’s people have brought a great deal of energy and a good business sense to their management of the Indians,” Gerheim said. “Everything they’ve done with the hockey operation indicates they’ll do the same there.

“They’ve brought stability to the ownership of both teams, which wasn’t apparent with either of the previous ownerships. And they’ve been very approachable, whether sought out by the media or the general public.”

Brett faces a number of difficulties in running the two pro sports teams.

“In baseball with the Indians, we have an agreement with the San Diego Padres,” Brett said. As the major league affiliate, the Padres pay the player, manager and coaches’ salaries and expenses and Brett pays for operation of the games. It is the Padres who determine the Indians’ player personnel moves and hires the field management.

Brett’s Chiefs--like the other 14 WHL teams--have no affiliation with any NHL team. The WHL players, whose ages range between 16 and 20, are paid between $120 and $600 plus expenses every month during the season. Brett and his staff are responsible for signing players, making trades and hiring a coaching staff. Brett recently named former King assistant coach Brian Maxwell as the Chiefs’ head coach.

Brett said operating the hockey team is like running a major league baseball team.

“Except we don’t have the ego problems (that go with employing major league standouts),” Brett said. “Our baseball and hockey players are just trying to get (to the big leagues). They have great attitudes because they’re playing for the love of the sport. One-third of the NHL’s first-round draft picks last year came from our league.”

When an NHL team drafts one of Brett’s Chiefs, his team will be paid for the rights to that player, in part justifying Brett’s financial investment in the player.

Brett sees himself as “a poor man’s Jerry Buss” and isn’t looking to become a major league team owner in any sport.

“It would be more than a challenge (to own a major league team),” Brett said. “It would be an unrealistic goal. It takes too much money.

“To be able to buy (the Indians and Chiefs) is reachable. And we still get the same enjoyment from running those teams that a major league team owner gets, without as many headaches.

“Our goal is the same as in the major leagues--to turn a profit. We’ve done it with the Indians by averaging 4,000 fans a game and I believe we can do it with the Chiefs.

“There were some ownership and image problems in Spokane which I think we can straighten out.”

The Bretts--who have a Hermosa Beach sports restaurant and bar and other investments in Southern California--don’t project themselves as future major league team owners, but they are not limiting their possibilities.

Brett is considering purchasing a team in the Continental Basketball Assn. and bringing it to Spokane or a city of similar size.

“The CBA intrigues me,” he said. “I love basketball. But hockey and basketball compete for dates in the winter, along with the entertainment dollar.”

Spokane is also considering building a new arena to replace the 35-year-old Coliseum.

But for the moment, Brett has a big enough job separating the Chiefs from the Indians.