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Originally Posted by matthew
Those fractures in his hands possibly explain why he led the league in errors for a catcher for 3 years straight. The Tigers reached the WS each year & he still had nearly a 50% CS rate.
Does anyone know how he & his brother reached the majors? I have always wondered. Coal Hill AR in the early 1900s is not what I would expect to be a baseball hotbed.
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I think the Tigers needing a catcher with a strong arm persuaded the scouts to take a chance on Schmidt as stated here: In 1902, Schmidt joined the Springfield Reds and later the Springfield Midgets, both of the Class D Missouri Valley League. In 1903, Schmidt had a brief stay with the Class B Rock Island Islanders, but otherwise, he spent three years with Springfield before being sent to the Minneapolis Millers in the Class A American Association at the end of 1904. His work in Minneapolis impressed Tiger scouts, who needed a quality catcher and were particularly interested in his strong arm. At the end of the 1905 season, they signed him.