[5][8] In 1912, he posted a .271 batting average in 80 games for Milwaukee and attracted the attention of the Chicago White Sox because of his aggressive approach to the catching position.

[12] Schalk was a small, agile man — he was only 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m) tall — who caught with the energy and mobility of a fifth infielder.

[1] Despite the White Sox's sixth-place finish, he ranked sixth in voting for the 1914 American League Most Valuable Player Award.

[1][15] His pitch-calling skills were evident as he guided the White Sox pitching staff to the lowest earned run average in the league.

[5] Schalk, in the middle of the diamond, ran to second base to take the relay from White Sox shortstop Swede Risberg and tagged Demmitt out.

[21] He told investigators he knew something was wrong when pitchers Eddie Cicotte and Lefty Williams did not throw the pitches he had called for.

[5] The White Sox lost the series five games to three, and eight of their players were banned for life from major league baseball as complicit in the scandal, though not Schalk.

[5][22] Years later, Schalk said that the conspirators caught a break when one of the "Clean Sox," pitcher Red Faber, was forced to sit out the Series with the flu.

[25] He rebounded in 1925 to play in 125 games, bat .274 with a career-high .382 on-base percentage, and lead the league in baserunners caught stealing.

[27] He then had a salary disagreement with team owner Charles Comiskey, and left the White Sox to become a player-coach with the New York Giants in 1929, but appeared in only five games before retiring as a player at the age of 36.

[28][29] No catcher has approached Schalk's record for career double plays, and none has led the league in fielding percentage eight times.

[citation needed] Schalk's 51.32% career caught stealing percentage ranks eighth all-time among major league catchers.

[5] His reputation as a defensive standout is enhanced due to the era in which he played: in the deadball era, catchers played a much greater defensive role than subsequently, given the large number of bunts and stolen base attempts, as well as the difficulty of handling the spitball pitchers who dominated pitching staffs.

[33] That he was selected by the Veterans Committee for enshrinement in 1955 is largely a tribute to his outstanding defensive skills and to the fact that he played to win the infamous 1919 World Series for the White Sox.

[3] He was an assistant baseball coach at Purdue University for 18 seasons, on the staff of luminaries such as Ward Lambert and Hank Stram.

[5] After his retirement as an active player for the MLB, Schalk invested in a successful bowling alley located in Evergreen Park, Illinois.

After 2 hours of confinement and people passing out from lack of air inside the rooms, several pin-boys were able to knock a door down and free everyone.