Need help with T210 Player Identification!

[nolemmings]

I can't pin it down for you, but the player is not the Mike Shields who played for Roanoke in 1911. That player was an infielder who played at least some 2b and who had come from college ball at Washington & Lee Univ.
The Shields you are looking for appears to have come from Arkansas, and was a catcher--possibly converted from 1b, who at least started the season in Augusta, although I could find nothing about him in 1910 throughout the season.

[Steve D]

After looking at newspapers from Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi in 1910 on Newspapers.com, it appears that it might be Charlie/Charley Shields.

He was a pitcher with Memphis in 1909. He then injured his arm, and was released. Then, a Shields appears as a catcher in March 1910, in Augusta, GA, when the pictures for the T210 set were taken. After that, Shields shows up in Meridian, MS as a catcher and outfielder.

He appears in the 1910 US Federal Census, on 23 Apr 1910, living in Memphis, Shelby County, TN. His age is listed as 30, and he was living with his mother and father. He listed his occupation as "Ball Player, Southern League".

He was back in Memphis in July, 1910, presumably out of the game.

Steve

[Vintagecatcher]

Thanks for the help gentleman!

I appreciate it!

Patrick

[Steve D]

I just found Charley Shields in the 1920 Federal Census, still in Memphis, still living with his now-widowed mother. He listed his occupation in 1920 as "Professional Ball Player".

Stev

[nolemmings]

Not likely Charley Shields in the T210 set. There is a Charlie Shields listed as pitching for Memphis through 1908. He was a southpaw, and the T210 pic is of a righty (not surprisingly, as a catcher).

[Steve D]

Originally Posted by nolemmings

Not likely Charley Shields in the T210 set. There is a Charlie Shields listed as pitching for Memphis through 1908. He was a southpaw, and the T210 pic is of a righty (not surprisingly, as a catcher).

Yea, I noticed that after posting the above.

The Charlie Shields who played for Memphis in 1908-09, and Meridian in 1910, is the same Charlie Shields who played for the Baltimore Orioles and St Louis Browns in 1902, and the St Louis Cardinals in 1907.

In comparing the pictures of this Charlie Shields on baseball-reference.com and find-a-grave.com, with the T210 photo, the picture on T210 shows a different person.

The thing is though, if he was a southpaw, why would he have been a catcher? The boxscores show the only "Shields" playing for Meridian, was primarily a catcher, and the newspaper story about him in Memphis in July 1910, clearly states that the Meridian "Shields, was the same "Shields" who pitched in Memphis. Baseball-reference.com also indicates that Charlie Shields played for both Memphis and Meridian, as well as the Orioles, Browns and Cardinals.

We're left with there being two Shields', or that there was one Shields, and he was ambidextrous. If there were two Shields', one was the pitcher/outfielder, and the other was a catcher. If so, they both played for Meridian at the same time (Jun-Jul 1910), but never played in the same game together. Also, if there was only one Shields, then the picture on the T210 card, is incorrect

Steve

[Vintagecatcher]

Thanks again gentleman.

The answer will be found in an old newspaper or one of our other Old Mill collectors will have the answer.

If I find the answer, I'll let you know.

Thanks again!

Patrick