Bingo DeMoss

From BR Bullpen

Elwood DeMoss

Bats Right, Throws Right
Height 6' 2", Weight 175 lb.

Born September 5, 1889 in Topeka, KS USA
Died January 26, 1965 in Chicago, IL USA

Bingo DeMoss was considered one of the best second baseman of the pre-Negro Leagues period. Playing in pitcher-friendly ballparks in a low-offense era, his raw offensive numbers were never good. He was valued for his defensive talent, his base-running ability, his bunting and hit-and-run skills, and his leadership qualities.

DeMoss began his career with the West Baden Sprudels in 1912 after several years with lesser teams. The 22-year-old hit .231. Playing for five different clubs in '13, he hit .091 against top black teams. DeMoss joined the Indianapolis ABCs at age 25 in 1915 and hit .243; he was tied for third among western black teams in doubles (8) and tied George Shively for the lead in steals (23). He hit .328 in a series in Cuba that year.

DeMoss batted .231 for Indianapolis in 1916, and moved to the Chicago American Giants the following season, where he achieved prominence on a team built around speed and bunting. He hit .168 in 1917 and led western teams with 7 steals. Chicago did play in a pitcher-friendly park and no regular hit over .258 with just one over .223, but DeMoss was just about the worst on the team. He was 1 for 5 against major-league white pitchers that year.

Given a "fourth class" draft classification, DeMoss was not called to serve in World War I. Using incomplete data, he hit only .103 for Chicago that season. Improving to .189 in 1919 and replacing Pete Hill as captain, DeMoss improved his batting average to .281 in '20. At age 31, he hit .241. Offensive statistics were improving just as in the white leagues, but Chicago remained a pitcher's paradise and the veteran was a decent 3rd on the champion team in hitting, well behind Cristobal Torriente (.346) and Jimmie Lyons (.295).

In 1922, the second baseman batted .256, fourth on the top team. DeMoss hit .252/.309/.332 in 1923, fielding a pretty slick .971. He hit .219 in '24 then .228 a season later. With the ABCs struggling, the Negro National League tried to bolster the team by sending other players to help out. DeMoss hit .282 for the club.

1927 brought Bingo to the Detroit Stars as a player-manager. The 39-year-old hit .210 in a hitter-friendly environment and guided the Stars to a 70-53 finish. He hit .155 for the team as a backup the next year and they were 58-38. In 1929 he hit a surprising .314 in limited time while the Stars were 38-39. Hitting .256 off the bench in 1930, he led the Detroit club to a 58-37 season. In his final season as a player, his team fell to 23-30 in 1931.

Released by Detroit, DeMoss managed the Cleveland Giants in 1933, his last top-level season. He managed mostly second-tier black teams after that, including the Chicago Brown Bombers of the semi-pro Negro Major League in 1942-43 and the Brooklyn Brown Dodgers of the United States Negro Baseball League in 1945.

DeMoss has been considered by some Negro Leagues researchers to be the best second baseman in Negro Leagues history, though rankings at that position vary widely, as there were few players in the entire history of the Negro Leagues who had long careers at 2nd base. He was nominated for the first list of potential Hall of Fame candidates for the Hall's February 2006 Negro Leagues vote, but he failed to garner enough support to make the first cut. To date, only a single Negro Leagues second baseman, Frank Grant, has been selected for the Hall.

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