Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent River Riders shortstop Josh Owens puts the tag on an Axmen runner for the out to end the third inning.

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Star Correspondent

On Sunday night, a young man’s dream of playing professional baseball became one step closer as Elizabethton River Rider infielder Josh Owens was selected by the Texas Rangers with the 84th pick in the Major League Baseball annual draft.

“We are really excited for Josh,” said Owens’ father, Jeremy Owens, who is also the River Riders manager. “When you are sitting around waiting for the call, it seems like forever, and when it happens it is pure elation. Josh slid a little bit further than we had thought, but we like where he is going. Texas has a great program for developing young talent, and we are excited for him to be going there.”

Shortstop was a popular position in this draft, as a good many were selected in the first three rounds, and Owens was taken as a multi-positional player, as he is a shortstop as well as a second baseman and a pitcher.

“It took a little longer than I had hoped,” Owens said. “But I was happy it was the Rangers. They have a great organization, and Evan Carter called me, and we are going to meet in the next few days to introduce ourselves and get acquainted. He’s a great guy. I never played against him, but I look forward to playing on the same team. It really is a great opportunity for me.”

Owens’ high school head coach, Jeff Reed — a former major leaguer and longtime batting coach for the former Elizabethton Twins — had high praise for the youngster, saying, “Josh has developed into a great leader on this team. Maybe the best leader I have ever had here. He communicates well and is a leader by example. The Rangers are not only getting a great ballplayer, they are getting a great young man.”

Owens joined Providence Academy as a freshman and played on the freshman team. In his sophomore year, he got some time with the varsity — mostly defensive replacement or pinch-hitting duties.

In Owens’ junior season is when he began to show signs of the player he would be, and in the summer of his junior year, he began weight training with Jason Fields, who was ETSU’s strength and conditioning coach, and it helped his game tremendously.

“When he started with weight training is when I knew he was serious about being a baseball player,” Reed said. “Fields worked with him that entire summer, and he put on some weight and filled out tremendously. That summer he also played travel ball, and that got him noticed by some scouts. His senior season, scouts were at all our home games, and sometimes there were four or five or more scouts.”

Owens will now take a few days to consider his options and hear what the Rangers are offering him in the way of salary and a contract, but he is simply enjoying seeing the fruits of his labor pay off, and he is thankful for the support his father and mother, Wendy Owens, have given him.

“I can’t say enough about how much my mom and dad have shown me support all my life,” Owens said. “They are quite proud, and I am glad to be someone they can be proud of. It is going to be an exciting time for me going forward.”