Spanos hits for heritage this summer

While former IU third baseman Vasili Spanos may not always look or act the part, his career numbers prove that he's worthy of playing professionally.\nHe may get another chance to play at the amateur level.\nSpanos was given the golden opportunity when he was one of 40 potential candidates for the Greek national team that recently completed its tryouts for this summer's Olympics. \nSpanos said he would enjoy getting a chance to play in the Olympics.\n"I think it would feel great," Spanos said. "Athens is hosting, so it would be special because I still have a lot of family in Greece."\nOut of the 40 players that tried out, only 24 of them will be invited back, and that decision won't come until late April or early May. The former walk-on is one of a small group of players that will continue to be examined throughout spring training by the Greek national team in their effort to field the best team possible. \nIndiana coach Bob Morgan said Spanos is worthy of playing in the Olympics.\n"He can hold his own, there's no doubt about that," Morgan said. "They want to watch his performance in the minors before a decision is made."\nWith a career batting average of .365, 43 home runs and 185 runs batted in, Spanos was given the opportunity to play professionally when the Oakland Athletics drafted him in the 11th round of the Major League Baseball draft this past June.\nThis spring, Spanos has been assigned to play for the Vancouver Canadians, according to the official Oakland Athletics web site. The Canadians are the single-A affiliate of the Athletics who play in the Northwest League. \nMorgan believes Spanos has the intangibles to play at the professional level.\n"He was a good offensive player for us last year," Morgan said. "He led the Big Ten in hitting last year and was also second in the nation in on base percentage. He's a good RBI guy, he hits for average, but people don't realize he's a good defensive third baseman as well."\nIndiana senior outfielder Kevin Mahar, a former teammate of Spanos, said he believes Vasili would be a nice addition to the Greek national team.\n"He is one of the best hitters I've ever seen," Mahar said.\nWaiting on the announcement of who makes the team could be nerve wracking, and potentially a dangerous thought to keep in the back of one's head, but Spanos remains stoic. He said he doesn't feel any added pressure to perform well this spring.\n"I try not to play with pressure," Spanos said. "I'm just happy to get another chance to play. I have to prove myself all over again."\n-- Contact staff writer Cory Steger at csteger@indiana.edu.