The Nationals announced Wednesday that they’ve claimed infielder Tsung-Che Cheng off waivers from the Mets. Left-hander Konnor Pilkington has been designated for assignment to create space on the 40-man roster.
In 2025, Cheng made his big league debut with the Pirates, albeit in the smallest of samples (seven hitless plate appearances). The 24-year-old batted just .207/.305/.267 through 410 Triple-A plate appearances, connecting on just one homer with a dozen doubles and trio of triples.
Obviously, that’s poor production at the plate, but Cheng is a plus runner who swiped 20 bags and can play solid defense at three infield spots (shortstop, third base, second base). He’s walked in 12.5% of his minor league plate appearances as well and has a career .350 on-base percentage in the minors.
Cheng still has a minor league option year remaining. He’ll head to spring training with the Nats in hopes of securing a utility infield job, and he can provide some defensive-minded depth behind third baseman Brady House, shortstop CJ Abrams and second baseman Luis Garcia Jr. Abrams has seen his name pop up in trade chatter recently and could still be moved. Cheng certainly wouldn’t be thrust into the starter’s role in that scenario, but it’d create further opportunities for him in the majors, depending on how the Nats would go about replacing Abrams in that hypothetical scenario.
Pilkington, 28, pitched 28 1/3 innings for Washington last season. He worked to a 4.45 ERA, fanned 27.6% of his opponents and logged an ugly 13.8% walk rate. That marked the left-hander’s third season with at least some big league time. He’s totaled 88 1/3 frames in the majors and turned in a solid 3.97 ERA, albeit with a pedestrian 22% strikeout rate and a beefy 12.9% walk rate.
A former third-round pick (White Sox, 2018), Pilkington has spent parts of four seasons in Triple-A, where he’s pitched to a 6.10 earned run average with comparable strikeout rates to his major league level but an even more alarming 14.1% walk rate. Moving from a starting role to a pure relief role bumped Pilkington’s average fastball to a career-best 94.5 mph this past season but didn’t help him rein in his command at all.
Pilkington still has one minor league option year remaining, and while his overall track record in Triple-A isn’t good, he notched a 2.59 ERA in 42 1/3 innings with Washington’s top affiliate in Rochester this past season. Even amid that seemingly strong showing, however, Pilkington walked 15% of his opponents. It’s possible another club is intrigued by his uptick in velocity and the strikeout numbers following a move to the bullpen, but unless he can dramatically cut back on his walk rate, it’s hard to imagine Pilkington carving out a lasting role in the big leagues.
The Nationals can trade Pilkington or place him on waivers at any point within the next five days. Waivers are a 48-hour process. His DFA will be resolved within a week’s time.