A Traveler’s Guide to Baseball: The Story of Tsung-Che Cheng

Born in the town of Jiuru in Pingtung County, Taiwan, Tsung-Che Cheng knew from the beginning that his dream was to become a professional baseball player. The Indianapolis Indians infielder’s upbringing was surrounded by the game, his home country’s most popular sport, and he discovered his love for it early in childhood.

“[I began practicing] when I was five or six years old,” Cheng said via interpreter Haagen Tan. “I was always playing at home. I broke the windows. I broke the TV. So, that’s how I got introduced to baseball.”

The now 23-year-old was raised by his parents in Jiuru, and he is the youngest of two sons.

“My mom is a housewife, and my dad is a truck driver,” Cheng said via Tan. “My mom went to every game I played to show her support since I was 12 years old.”

An infielder by trade, a young Cheng first believed he would become a pitcher. One of his biggest inspirations on his baseball journey was former major league pitcher Chien-Ming Wang, who appeared in nine MLB seasons from 2005-16 for New York (AL), Washington, Toronto and Kansas City. According to Cheng, all of Taiwan raved for Wang when he would take the mound for the Yankees. Tuning into those broadcasts with his peers were a highlight of his childhood.

“I always imagined myself standing on the mound at one of the major league stadiums,” Cheng said via Tan. “I didn’t know at the time that baseball would be so difficult.”

Despite all of baseball’s challenges along the way, Cheng committed to his development as a player. Little did he know that his baseball expedition would take him to all corners of the Earth. To date, he has played in nine different countries: Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, China, Puerto Rico, the United States, Dominican Republic, Colombia and Mexico.

“I’m not a guy with much patience,” Cheng said with a laugh via Tan. “The game is long, and it takes up six or seven months every year. The one thing I’ve learned the most is to have patience. You can’t define yourself for a single performance. You must wait for the best things to come.”

Cheng’s international travels began in high school, playing games in Japan and South Korea. He participated in the U-18 Baseball World Cup, winning the gold medal for Chinese Taipei (Taiwan), its first in the tournament since 2010.

Following his graduation from Pu-Men High School, Cheng set his sights on professional baseball. He was signed by Pittsburgh on July 2, 2019, as an international free agent with a signing bonus of $380,000.

Just when his vision began materializing, the whole world halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As baseball across the globe shut down, Cheng dedicated this free time to training and finishing his college education. Baseball is as much a mental game as it is physical, so Cheng went home to better himself within all the uncertainty.

“I was kind of confused with what happened to the world at the time,” Cheng said via Tan. “I went back to Taiwan, did a lot of strength training and tried to finish college. I attended the National Taiwan Sport University. My major is hard to describe, it’s just sports. They have a lot of different classes like sports psychology and kinesiology. I got my bachelor’s degree.”

After graduating and as the pandemic subsided, Cheng’s professional career would soon begin. A momentous encounter with his childhood hero, Wang, at a conference stoked the flames of his goal.

“He’s a really nice guy,” said Cheng via Tan. “He shared a lot of experience of what it’s like to play baseball in the United States and what life is like in Minor League Baseball.”

Cheng’s world tour continued as he participated in two international tournaments in 2022. Following the 2021 season, he first joined the 2022 Caribbean Series champion Caimanes de Barranquilla in Colombia. Toward the end of 2022, he represented Chinese Taipei in the 2022 Asian Games, taking home the silver medal as they defeated South Korea in the championship, 2-0.

As Cheng climbed the ranks in the minor leagues, he entered the biggest international tournament of his life: qualifying to play for Chinese Taipei in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.

“There were so many major league players in this tournament,” Cheng said of the WBC via Tan. “I got a chance to compete with them, and it felt really good.”

Cheng went 3-for-15 in the tournament with three RBI. Cheng and his compatriots had the blessing of playing in their home country, with Taiwan hosting Pool A in the preliminary round. In front of his home crowd, Chinese Taipei won two of four games. They defeated Italy, 11-7, and the Netherlands, 9-5.

“We got to play on our home field [at Taichung Stadium],” said Cheng via Tan. “All the Taiwanese fans cheer for you, whether that’s at the game, in a bar or somewhere else. The atmosphere, playing with all my friends, was really nice. It was a good experience.”

During the 2024 season, Cheng got his first taste with Indianapolis, appearing in six games at St. Paul to conclude the season. He was assigned to Indy to begin 2025, but his on-field talents were quickly needed at a higher level. On April 7, a storybook dream became a reality. Alongside his wife, Irene, who he met in elementary school and began dating after high school, Cheng got the call to the majors for the first time on her birthday.

“It was a special experience,” Cheng said via Tan. “We were on our way to pick up the birthday cake we reserved for her. It was at a moment I never expected. It was amazing.”

The Pirates latest callup made his MLB debut two days later, on April 9 vs. St. Louis at PNC Park in Pittsburgh. He became the 18th Taiwanese player in MLB history, going 0-for-2 with a caught stealing.

“I finally achieved my dream from childhood,” Cheng said via Tan. “Everyone knew this was my goal to get to the major leagues. And the other thing is, I never played in such a beautiful stadium. That moment may have been the most beautiful thing I’ve ever had.”

When he is not playing baseball, Cheng travels back home to Taiwan in the offseason. He loves to travel to different countries, being in his comfort zone of the fresh air and food at home and has recently picked up a new hobby, pickleball. His favorite hobby is relaxing at home watching YouTube videos.

When asked for a message to younger countrymates aspiring to become professional baseball players, Cheng had this to say via Tan:

“Have faith and trust yourself. You have to trust that you will keep improving, become a better player and that you can achieve your goal. You just have to have that faith, give it your all and give out all your best.”