Another Loss on the Field as the Angel World Turns : Baseball: Anaheim falls to Yankees, 8-3, as manager search begins and Tavares says clubhouse is ‘more like a day-care center.’

It was another day in that season-long Angel drama “Upstairs, Downstairs” at Edison Field on Sunday.

Upstairs: General Manager Bill Bavasi said he has started to look for a new manager. Team President Tony Tavares talked as if players shouldn’t feel too secure--after all, the team fired the clubhouse’s big screen TVs on Saturday.

Downstairs: Pitcher Chuck Finley was scratched because of a lower back strain. The Angels lost to the New York Yankees, 8-3, in front of 35,481 and could be officially eliminated from postseason play today.

So in Game 3 since Manager Terry Collins resigned, team officials began moving forward, ever-so slightly, while the team shifted back into reverse.

Another loss today, coupled with a Boston Red Sox victory, makes the Angels’ pathetic season officially over with a month left to play.

“I’m still not sure [Collins] was the problem down there,” Tavares said. “It’s more like a day-care center than a major league clubhouse.

“Somebody said to me, ‘You can’t trade 25 guys.’ I said, ‘Why not?’ ”

Finding 25 takers might be a problem, even if they use eBay.

“Some of the parts are right, it’s just some of them haven’t meshed well,” Bavasi said.

Bavasi began compiling a list of manager candidates, which should include former Milwaukee Brewer manager Phil Garner, Yankee coach Chris Chambliss, Atlanta coach Don Baylor and Joe Maddon, the Angels’ interim manager, among others.

So Bavasi is pressing on despite the rumor that his future with the team is hazy.

“I told Billy to proceed like he had a 20-year contract,” Tavares said.

Said Bavasi: “It’s real simple, I work for Tony Tavares and follow his lead.”

Whether Tavares will be around next season is yet another matter, as Disney officials continue their attempt to sell the team. But Tavares said that could not be an issue in the hiring of a new manager, at least at this time.

“You have to put that aside,” Tavares said.

“I have been involved in merger/acquisitions for a long time and one thing I know is 90% of the deals fall through. And even the deals that are made fall through a few times [before they get done].”

Garner, fired by the Brewers last month, seems to be a strong candidate, although Bavasi would not comment on who he was considering. Garner said he has not been contacted yet.

“My intent is to manage again if the situation is right,” Garner said. “I would be very interested [in the Angel job].”

Baylor is not as free to lobby, as the Braves are fighting for the National League East Division title.

“My reaction to any of that is, when I came here, [General Manager] John Schuerholz and I had an understanding that they would talk to John first,” Baylor said. “That’s protocol for me. I’m here because I have a job here and I’m going to do my job.”

The Angels, once again, didn’t do theirs Sunday.

It didn’t help that they were without Finley, who is 16-9 against the Yankees.

He injured his back against Cleveland in his last start and underwent X-rays Saturday.

“I’ve heard nothing negative about it,” Maddon said. “Unless you hear otherwise, he will make his next start.”

Mike Fyhrie was told he was starting when he arrived at the stadium. It’s doubtful more prep time would have mattered. Fyhrie took a 2-1 lead into the third, then gave up three runs. Derek Jeter, who had four hits, homered to tie the score and Jorge Posada’s two-run single gave the Yankees the lead.

Fyhrie left the bases loaded, but only because Jim Edmonds made a diving catch of a Scott Brosius soft liner.

It was a Yankee blur after that, although Fyhrie wasn’t around after the third. Chuck Knoblauch had a two-run double in a three-run fifth.

Darryl Strawberry homered in the sixth.

“You make a mistake against those hitters and they let you know you made a mistake,” Maddon said.