 He then played for the Springfield Reds of the Missouri Valley League (1902-1904), the Rock Island Islanders of the Three-I League (1903), and the Minneapolis Millers of the American Association (1904-1905).In late August 1905, the Minneapolis Millers sold Schmidt and two other players to the Detroit Tigers.Schmidt was initially a holdout from the Tigers' 1906 training camp, but he finally reported on March 21.