Tsung-Che Cheng’s rise with the Boston Red Sox has been one of the stranger side stories of their historic run.
Not long ago, Cheng was bouncing around the league like a roster afterthought. Over about six weeks this winter, he was part of five different MLB organizations, the kind of rapid turnover that usually sends a player into the background for good. Instead, he landed in Boston and turned into a real piece for a team that ripped off a 15-game winning streak before Wednesday’s 5-1 loss to the Baltimore Orioles finally stopped it.
He has not been asked to carry the offense. Batting ninth, Cheng’s role is simple enough: chip in when he can and let the hitters above him do the heavy lifting. But in the field, he has been exactly the kind of player the Red Sox hoped they were getting - and the kind of defender who once made him an intriguing name in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ system.
Cheng signed with Pittsburgh as an international free agent out of Taiwan in 2019 and climbed into the upper levels of the organization. His shortstop glove was always the selling point, even if questions lingered about whether his bat would ever be enough to make him a steady major leaguer.
The Pirates eventually needed his 40-man roster spot to complete the Brandon Lowe trade in December, and that kicked off the shuffle. Pittsburgh designated Cheng for assignment, the Tampa Bay Rays claimed him on Jan. 7 and waived him less than two weeks later, the New York Mets claimed him Jan. 16, the Washington Nationals grabbed him Jan. 28, and Boston became his fifth organization on Feb. 6.
The Red Sox could have kept the carousel moving. They didn’t.
That decision has looked better and better as Cheng has settled in as a useful major leaguer - one who brings premium defense, fills out the bottom of the lineup and helps a contender keep rolling. He hasn’t become a star, and he hasn’t turned into a headline-grabbing bat. But he has become dependable, and for Boston, that has mattered.
The Pirates didn’t make some massive blunder by moving on. Players get squeezed out all the time when rosters get tight, and Pittsburgh had its reasons. Still, Cheng’s path has turned into an unlikely success story: a player who spent the winter getting passed around, then found a team that kept him long enough to become part of a historic stretch.
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