Pape began his baseball career with independent teams in a suburb of Cincinnati, before joining the Milwaukee Brewers of the American Association in 1908.

He was demoted to Brockton a year later, being recalled in 1911 to join a Boston rotation that included Smoky Joe Wood, Ed Cicotte and Ray Collins.

[1] Boston Globe reporter James O'Leary suggested that the reason he pitched so little in 1912 was that manager Jake Stahl lost confidence in Pape after he made an error in the first game at Fenway Park on May 17 which caused the Red Sox to lose.

[2] In a three-season career, Pape posted a 13–9 record with 84 strikeouts and a 2.80 ERA in 51 appearances, including 24 starts, 13 complete games, two shutouts, one save, and 283⅓ innings of work.

[2] Sportswriter Joe S. Jackson wrote an article in The Washington Post about the injustice of the situation, as Pape would have earned more if he went to the Reds.