Well, look what the Detroit Tigers have already done. Andrew Parker of Sox Prospects reports, and Chris Cotillo confirms, that the Tigers have acquired infielder Tsung-Che Cheng from the Boston Red Sox for cash. Cheng would join fellow Taiwanese infielder Hao-Yu Lee in Detroit. The 25-year-old hitter was a solid shortstop with little major league experience.
The Red Sox 40-man roster is getting a little crowded, so this clears up a spot for them. Of course, the Tigers 40-man roster is also a bit crowded with eight players due to this addition to the 40-man roster injured over 60-days. The point here seems to be to develop some other options at the shortstop position beyond Kevin McGonigle. John Peck gave them a right-handed bat, and Cheng used it. If this offense is bothering anyone on the Tigers, it’s probably Trey Sweeney.
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Cheng signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates as a 19-year-old international free agent for $380,000 in 2019. The Pirates finally released him last offseason and he was picked up by the Washington Nationals and then placed on waivers, where the Red Sox acquired him.
Cheng has some tools. He’s fast, he can play big league shortstop, second base, and a little bit at third as well. The problem is that he hits quite a bit, and his power is marginally average. He struck out 23.8 percent of the time in Triple-A last year, although he didn’t walk much, 13.5 percent in 2026 at Triple-A, and reports solid strike rates. However, he swings more than you’d like, and he should be a regular team player. The Tigers probably want to work with him and see if they can unlock something. With Sweeney now recovered from major shoulder surgery, and few other shortstop options besides McGonigle and Peck, this means little additional coverage. The lack of options is a problem though.
Obviously the offseason has just begun, and for all we know, Cheng will end up getting released by the Tigers before the offseason finally ends. There is no significant player out of the options. For now, the pickup is deep. Maybe they see something in his bat to unlock, and it doesn’t hurt that Hao-Yu Lee and Cheng are familiar with each other as former teammates for the Chinese Taipei 2019 World Champion U-18 WBSC team. Sometimes a little more comfort factor for international players can help.