Nov. 6, 2009

Anthony D'Albora -

(San Francisco) – Just as the final notes were heard being sung of Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York” in celebration in the Bronx after another World Series crown by the New York Yankees, another storied rivalry was rekindled Thursday night as the Green and Gold “Fall World Series” draft was held. The Gold Team was represented in the draft by Coaches Matt Hobbs and Jon Norfolk, while the defending champion Green Team was represented by field manager Greg Revelli and front office head and draft guru, Anthony D’Albora.

“We’re excited to be back for another opportunity to bring home a championship” explained Revelli when asked of the Green Team’s confidence in their chance to win back to back years. “We feel that we have the leadership on the field, and the right guy in the front office that will bring in the right guys to take care of business on the field.”

The draft began with the customary coin toss to see which team would select first, and it was the Green Team who won the toss and decided to defer the first selection to the Gold Team for an opportunity to select the second and third overall picks in the round.

“It was an easy decision for us to defer the pick” D’Albora explained of the thought process on giving the first overall pick to their opponents. “We felt that the talent level in the draft pool was high all the way around and by giving ourselves an opportunity to select the second and third players in the draft gave us the best chance to enhance the overall quality of our ballclub.”

The draft rolled through almost seamlessly, but as usual there is always a deadline deal to shake things up. In the 11th hour before the rosters were announced it was revealed that both teams had struck a deal, with the Green Team sending 1B/OF Chris Dittmann to the Gold Team in return for C Mason Morioka. “We feel that getting Chris was a great opportunity for us to produce runs at the plate and add depth in the outfield and first base. The Gold Team is excited to add that guy.”

After the dust settled, player representative Troy Nakamura took a second to look back on the final results for both teams. “I think both teams walked away from the draft very happy. You look at the Gold Team adding quality bats in guys like Jason Mahood and Pete Lavin and top notch pitching in Doug Murray and Matt Lujan. But the Green Team also comes out of it with some pretty solid veterans in SS Derek Poppert and the guy who provided last year’s game winning hit, George Lujan. And their pitching staff is no slouch either, as it is anchored by RHP Cameron Love and one of the team captains in Matt Hiserman.

Once the trade was approved by the commissioner’s office the rosters were finalized and both teams were set. We sat down with Commissioner Nino Giarratano to get his take on the series. “I am extremely excited for the 11th annual Fall World Series. I want to wish both teams and their managers good luck, and let’s hope the weather holds up for what should be a great series.” When asked for his prediction on the outcome Giarratano kept it close to the cuff, “If I had to pick a winner, I’d say that the Dons win in 7 games!”

You can follow the series and all the action on 360iCoach. To view all video clips for the Fall World Series go to s3.360icoachserver.com. Type in the user name fws and the password fws. Enjoy what should be another Hilltop Classic and GO DONS!