Shupe's minor league career spanned 1939 to 1950; he did not play professionally for two seasons (1942–1943) during World War II.

[1] Shupe is one of many ballplayers who only appeared in the major leagues during World War II.

His first major league experience was on July 7, 1945,[2] for the Boston Braves against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

[3] He played first base regularly for the Braves through the end of the season,[4] taking over from Joe Mack, whose last game had been on July 4.

[6] Shupe played in 78 major league games, registering a .269 batting average (76-for-283), 15 RBIs, and no home runs.