Elwood "Bingo" DeMoss (September 5, 1889 – January 26, 1965) was a
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...
player and
manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
in the
Negro leagues
The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans and, to a lesser extent, Latin Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be ...
from
1905
As the second year of the massive Russo-Japanese War begins, more than 100,000 die in the largest world battles of that era, and the war chaos leads to the 1905 Russian Revolution against Nicholas II of Russia (Shostakovich's 11th Symphony i ...
to
1943
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January 1 – WWII: The Soviet Union announces that 22 German divisions have been encircled at Stalingrad, with 175,000 killed and 137,650 captured.
* January 4 – ...
.
Early life
DeMoss was born in
Topeka, Kansas
Topeka ( ; Kansa language, Kansa: ; iow, Dópikˀe, script=Latn or ) is the Capital (political), capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the County seat, seat of Shawnee County, Kansas, Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the ...
in 1889
["WWI Draft Registration for Elwood "Bingo" DeMoss, 28th Precinct, 2nd Ward, Cook County, Illinois, June 5, 1917](_blank)
/ref> and began his playing career in 1905 with the Topeka Giants. He is considered the finest fielding second baseman of the 1910s and 1920s Negro leagues
The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans and, to a lesser extent, Latin Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be ...
. He was the captain of the 1926 Negro league champion Chicago American Giants
The Chicago American Giants were a Chicago-based Negro league baseball team. From 1910 until the mid-1930s, the American Giants were the most dominant team in black baseball. Owned and managed from 1911 to 1926 by player-manager Andrew "Rube" Fo ...
. Using great bat control, DeMoss is considered one of the greatest bunters in Negro league History. His highest batting average came in 1926 when he finished second in the batting race with a .303 average. After he retired, he spent fifteen years as a manager.
Playing career
DeMoss spent his prime years with the Chicago American Giants, and as a player-manager for the Indianapolis ABC's and Detroit Stars. From 1920 through 1930, he batted .247, including highs of .314 for the 1929 Detroit Stars and .292 for the 1920 Chicago American Giants.
DeMoss was a proficient bunter and hit-and-run man, making him an ideal second-place hitter. Jelly Gardner, who batted ahead of DeMoss on the American Giants, said of his teammate, "If he thought you'd be out trying to steal, he'd foul off the pitch if he couldn't hit it well. He could hit 'em anywhere he wanted to.
Coaching career
DeMoss retired as a player after 1930, but continued to manage through 1947. In 1945, he managed the Brooklyn Brown Dodgers of the United States Baseball League, a circuit organized by Branch Rickey to scout players for possible signing by the Brooklyn Dodgers. The league lasted only one full season.
Private life
In 1917, at age 27, DeMoss registered for the WWI Draft and listed himself as married and also supporting his mother. He also lists his home address as 3433 Vernon Avenue in Chicago, Illinois.
Later life
DeMoss held the title of Treasurer for the Old Ball Players Club of Chicago, an organization dedicated to supporting black baseball players in the Negro leagues and honoring those who played for Major Leagues Baseball teams.
DeMoss was well respected in his community, residing in the Bronzeville area of Chicago, known for his keen sense of business and money management he often provided support in the form of loans and opportunities to those in need, despite the harsh era of 'Segregation' throughout the United States.
At the age of 63, DeMoss received several votes listing him second only to Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line ...
as best second baseman on the 1952 ''Pittsburgh Courier
The ''Pittsburgh Courier'' was an African-American weekly newspaper published in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1907 until October 22, 1966. By the 1930s, the ''Courier'' was one of the leading black newspapers in the United States.
It was acqu ...
'' player-voted poll of the Negro leagues' best players ever.["1952 Pittsburgh Courier Poll of Greatest Black Players"](_blank)
/ref>
References
*
External links
an
Baseball-Reference Black Baseball stats
an
Seamheads
* an
Seamheads
{{DEFAULTSORT:Demoss, Bingo
Negro league baseball managers
Chicago American Giants players
French Lick Plutos players
Indianapolis ABCs players
Oklahoma Monarchs players
1889 births
1965 deaths
Sportspeople from Topeka, Kansas
Baseball players from Kansas
20th-century African-American people
Kansas City Giants players