Sports: Teams select Falcons pair

Teams select Falcons pair

By JOHN C. COTEY, Times Staff Writer

For the biggest day of his life, Dunedin slugger Brian Dopirak expected at least a few hours filled with the anticipation and nerves that come with waiting to be drafted by a major-league team.

Instead, he got 45 minutes.

In the second round, with the 56th pick in a draft that surprisingly sped along, the Cubs made Dopirak the first of two Falcons picked Tuesday.

Teammate Steve Doetsch was chosen in the eighth round (239th overall) to cap a quiet day for Pinellas County, which sent a record four teams to the state semifinals this season.

While Doetsch tumbled, Dopirak was picked right about where many expected.

The Falcons' leader this past season got a call from the Red Sox telling him they were going to take the Crystal Beach resident 59th if he was still there.

He wasn't. The Cubs beat the Red Sox to the phone, and it was Dopirak adviser Mike Milchin of SFX Sports who delivered the news.

"I was just chilling when the phone rang," said Dopirak, who hit 11 homers this season and batted .490. "I thought it would take longer, but the draft was flying by. I was happy. My main goal is to play professional baseball, and it's always nice getting drafted that high."

At 6-foot-4, 220 pounds, Dopirak was considered one of the top two prep sluggers in the draft. His scouting description on the MLB Web site called him a "physical horse ... well-conditioned athlete. Physically mature, built similar to young Jose Canseco. Powerful stroke with light tower, raw power. Really puts on show during batting practice. Good bat speed with extension and lift in swing."

Doetsch, arguably Pinellas County's most gifted player, expected to be picked somewhere between the second and fifth rounds but slid to Philadelphia in the eighth. "That was lower than I thought," said Doetsch, who led Dunedin with a .523 average. "The scout (who picked me) said I should have gone higher. It was getting a little frustrating."

RED SOX PICK EX-RAM: Near the end of the draft's first day, former Ridgewood pitcher Tom MacLane was taken in the 19th round.

The 22-year-old MacLane, who grew up a Red Sox fan in Rhode Island and had been drafted twice before, plays at Florida Atlantic University. He was preparing for the school's first NCAA super-regional appearance this week when his coach told him the news.

- Staff writer Greg Auman contributed to this report.