Dewitt Owens (September 25, 1900 – May 2, 1983) was an American

Negro league 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 ...

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists who ...

between 1926 and 1930. A native of

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

, Owens attended

Samuel Huston College Samuel ''Šəmūʾēl'', Tiberian: ''Šămūʾēl''; ar, شموئيل or صموئيل '; el, Σαμουήλ ''Samouḗl''; la, Samūēl is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the bi ...

. He made his Negro leagues debut in 1926 with the

Cleveland Elites The Cleveland Elites were a Negro league baseball team in the Negro National League, based in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1926. In their only season, they failed to finish the second half of the season. References African-American history in Clevel ...

. He went on to play for the

Birmingham Black Barons The Birmingham Black Barons were a Negro league baseball team that played from 1920 until 1960. They shared their home field of Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama, with the white Birmingham Barons, usually drawing larger crowds and equal pres ...

the following two seasons, then spent a year with the

Memphis Red Sox The Memphis Red Sox were an American Negro league baseball team that was active from 1920 to 1959. Originally named the Barber College Baseball Club, the team was initially owned and operated by Arthur P. Martin, a local Memphis barber. In the la ...

before finishing his career back in Birmingham in 1930. Owens died in Austin in 1983 at age 82.

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External links

an
Seamheads
1900 births 1983 deaths Birmingham Black Barons players Cleveland Elites players Memphis Red Sox players 20th-century African-American sportspeople Baseball infielders {{Negro-league-baseball-infielder-stub