IL1 Indianapolis Indians

Hoosier Native Returns Home in Tribe Lineup

July 31, 2019 - International League (IL1)
Indianapolis Indians News Release


The Evansville Mater Dei Wildcats were in the Indiana High School State Baseball Finals, held annually at the home of the Indianapolis Indians. Owen, a senior with a standout .404 batting average, took the field at shortstop. He went 2-for-3 against top-seeded Northfield and drove in one of the Wildcats' two runs, but his final game on the Triple-A field was a loss.

Or so he thought.

Owen went on to play baseball at Indiana State University, where he provided a thump in the lineup his final two seasons as a Sycamore. He led the team in 2015 with a .344 average (33-for-96), splitting his time between starting as a designated hitter and playing the outfield.

He was selected by the Pirates in the 25th round of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft, continuing his baseball career outside of Indiana.

"It was a lot of fun. It was something that I had dreamed of for a very long time and for the Pirates to take a chance on me was really special," Owen said.

Growing up in the Midwest and playing ball at two Indiana schools prepared him for life on the outside, something he had never experienced until being assigned to Short Season-A West Virginia for his first professional season.

"I think it's really just that midwestern attitude," he said. "We have to deal with it being a lot wetter and the weather being more unpredictable than guys down South or in California. I think it just prepares you mentally and makes you a little bit tougher."

Owens' two-and-a-half-year professional career has featured stops in West Virginia, Bradenton and Altoona, mirroring his work ethic and the spark his bat can bring to the lineup at every level.

With an Eastern League leading 15 home runs on June 20, the news he received from Curve manager Michael Ryan was the best he'd ever heard. He was coming home.

"I picked up the phone and I immediately called my dad," Owen said. "Just coming home and being able to sleep in my own bed at my own house is just something really special and that I think a lot of guys don't get to do."

Seven years and eight days removed from being named the IHSAA 2A Baseball runner-up, Owen took to Victory Field again, this time donning an Indianapolis Indians uniform.

"It was definitely special," he said. "It was kind of surreal actually. Obviously being an Indiana kid and seeing a lot about the Indians and a lot about Victory Field, to be able to come back here and look around and take it all in, it was a lot of fun and was something I'll never forget."

Family and friends took to downtown Indianapolis to watch Owen's homecoming, making it even more special. The surreal experience from the field drifted into the stands as he walked out onto the field and up to the plate for his first at-bat.

"I talked to my dad after the game and he said he got a little bit of butterflies in his stomach when he saw me walk out there, especially with seeing our last name on the back of my jersey," Owen said. "He was super excited. He gets nervous when I play so he's not going to be at a lot of games I don't think, but the fact that I'm a little bit closer to him is really special."

And the weather he had grown accustomed to in Indiana that had prepared him to play baseball anywhere in the country? It didn't wait to welcome him back.

His first game back at The Vic featured a 50-minute delay with pouring rain, in true Midwestern fashion.

"I just stick with the same approach that I always do, treat every day like it's my last and playing the game as hard as I can regardless of the weather," Owen said. "I think that is a major key to a lot of the success I've had."

Owen was hit on the hand in his second at bat in Indianapolis to spark a 15-day stint on the injured list. Since returning to the Tribe lineup on July 18 he has hit safely in eight of nine games for a .375 average (9-for-24) and two home runs.

The Tribe beat Louisville on June 24 in Owen's first game after returning to Indiana and have since gone 4-1 with the Hoosier in their home lineup. His first game at Victory Field might have been a loss, but he's since moved on to bigger and better things in front of his hometown crowd.

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