Joseph Wayne Pittman was born January 1, 1953, to the late Freddie L. and Lee Artie Criswell Pittman. He was educated in the public school system in Houston and was a 1971 graduate of Kashmere High School. At Kashmere High, he excelled as a four-year letterman and starter; he also served two years as captain before graduating as one of the most decorated players in school’s baseball history. He would often state that the “Ryon Sports Baseball Organization”, Joe’s neighborhood team had many players that possess greater talent than he but, one of his driving forces was to get his education financed. The summer before entering college Joe was invited to try out for the prestige all white Karl Young baseball league, very confident in his athletic ability to compete; he accepted the challenge and helped break the color-barrier as one of the first minorities to play in the Karl Young league.
Joe attended Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana on an athletic scholarship where he obtained his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration in 1975. At Southern, Joe was a two-time All-Conference infielder and co-captain of the 1975 squad that participated in the NAIA World Series in Phoenix Arizona. He was drafted by the Houston Astros in 1975 in the fifth round; he also played in the major leagues with the San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants and the Detroit Tigers over the course of ten years. On April 25, 1981, Joe fulfilled a lifelong dream of running onto the field in the Houston Astrodome (8th Wonder of the World) as the starting second baseman for his hometown team the Astros. After Joe retired from baseball as a player he served as a scout for the Astros and a hitting coach for their Single-A team during a twenty-year span.
It was at Southern University that he was tagged with the nickname “Joe Shoes” because he wore white cleats in high school, later as an Astro he was widely known as Shoes Pittman. On June 13, 2014, Joseph Pittman passed away. He is survived by his wife Gwendolyn, daughter Josina Pittman-Greene (Derrick husband, Reece Joseph Greene, grandson) and his siblings Brenda, Ava, Rhonda, and Venetia.