In 1888, Cantz played for the St. Louis Whites of the Western Association and then was transferred to the American Association's Baltimore Orioles. He appeared in 57 games for the Orioles in 1888–1889. The following year he played with the Philadelphia Athletics, where he appeared in only five games before retiring. In his three major league seasons, Cantz had a .157 batting average with 34 hits and 18 runs batted in.