Hoosier slugger drafted

Vasili Spanos was selected by the Oakland Athletics in the 11th round of the June 3 MLB draft, making him the 332nd overall pick and the third Hoosier taken in the last two years. Spanos had the kind of numbers that are hard to overlook, and it appears that Oakland now has a bona fide slugger in their farm system. \nWhy would Oakland, or any other team for that matter, be impressed enough with Spanos to use a first-day draft pick on him? Well, for anyone who hasn't noticed, he has been putting up impressive numbers during his Hoosier career, which climaxed in a great senior campaign -- leading the Big Ten in virtually every offensive category. Spanos was the leader in the conference in batting average (.434, which was 40 points higher than the next best average), home runs with eight, on-base percentage (.525) and slugging percentage (.778). Spanos was named to the first-team All Big Ten for the second straight year and was named recently to the American Baseball Coaches Association All-Mideast Region second team. \n"He produced every year. His career is not over," IU coach Bob Morgan said. "This guy is going to produce at the next level."\nHis career numbers also left their mark on the IU record books as he ranks in the top 10 in seven offensive categories. He finished with a .365 batting average, good enough to be in the top 10 in school history; a .673 slugging percentage, ranked second all-time for a Hoosier; his 43 home runs tied him for third; 185 runs batted in ranks tied for third; 228 hits is ranked sixth, 51 doubles is fifth, as is his 100 extra-base hits. \nWith those kinds of numbers, it's almost surprising that he wasn't drafted earlier. His mother, Angie Spanos, said the draft was happy and sad. \n"He was actually in surgery the day of the draft when the call was made," Angie Spanos said. "We thought he would go higher. But he has a great determination and work ethic, he believes in himself, and he will go for his dream of playing in the major leagues." \nThe surgery removed a bone from Vasili's hand, an injury that plagued him for the last couple weeks of the IU season. However, the injury really only affected Vasili's power numbers as he continued to torture opposing pitchers through the end of the season.\n"I'm upset that I couldn't finish the season healthy," Vasili said. "But I'm rehabbing now." \nThe path from the minor leagues to the majors rarely is achieved and can be a long journey, but those around Vasili said they believe in him. \n"Vasili will prove that he can play well," Vasili's father, George Spanos said. "His four years at Indiana were all productive and he has good raw power." \nThe A's have a good history of not only drafting good amateur players but also developing them into major league players. Oakland notoriously drafts proven college athletes (in fact, their first 20 picks this year were all collegians), as opposed to the more popular and traditional method of drafting unproven but higher-potential high schoolers. The A's method has paid off, with the development and success of such stars as Miguel Tejada, Barry Zito, Jason Giambi and others. Vasili seems to fit the A's success mold, as he obviously has had success as a college player. \nVasili said he is keeping things in perspective. \n"I'm just going to play ball. It's just a game," Vasili said. "And I think my chances (of making it) are good if I stay healthy and just keep playing."\nVasili's father said he is hopeful for the future while not forgetting his son's performance as a Hoosier. \n"I hope that he left a mark at Indiana," George Spanos said. "And that his accomplishments will help to improve the program. There's no reason that IU can't be a top-level program"