Kai-Wei Teng | |||||||||||||||
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San Francisco Giants – No. 70(MLB); 53(MiLB) | |||||||||||||||
Pitcher | |||||||||||||||
Born: Taichung, Taiwan | December 1, 1998|||||||||||||||
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |||||||||||||||
MLB debut | |||||||||||||||
March 31, 2024, for the San Francisco Giants | |||||||||||||||
MLB statistics (through March 31, 2024) | |||||||||||||||
Win–loss record | 0–0 | ||||||||||||||
Earned run average | 9.00 | ||||||||||||||
Strikeouts | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Teams | |||||||||||||||
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Medals
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Kai-Wei Teng ( Chinese: 鄧愷威; Wade–Giles: Teng4 Kai3-wei1; born December 1, 1998) is a Taiwanese professional baseball pitcher for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2024. Teng stands at 188 cm (6 feet 2 inches) and weighs 113 kg (250 pounds). He currently plays for the Sacramento River Cats, the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants.
Teng attended Shi Yuan Senior High School in Taichung before transferring to Kao-Yuan Vocational High School of Technology & Commerce in Kaohsiung. He enrolled at the National Taiwan Sport University. [1]
On October 20, 2017, the Minnesota Twins signed Teng for a $500,000 signing bonus. [2] He made his professional debut with the rookie–level Gulf Coast League Twins in 2018, making 10 appearances (9 starts) and posting a 3.59 ERA with 47 strikeouts in 42+2⁄3 innings pitched. [3]
He began the 2019 season with the Cedar Rapids Kernels of the Single–A Midwest League, and was named the league's pitcher of the week for the week ending July 14. [4] In 9 games for Cedar Rapids, Teng logged a 4–0 record and 1.60 ERA.
On July 31, 2019, the Twins traded Teng, Jaylin Davis, and Prelander Berroa to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for Sam Dyson. [5] He made five starts for the Single–A Augusta GreenJackets, recording a 1.55 ERA with 39 strikeouts across 39+2⁄3 innings of work. Teng did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. [6]
On June 2, 2021, while pitching for the High–A Eugene Emeralds, he was suspended for 10 games after umpires found a foreign substance in his glove. [7] In 21 starts for Eugene, Teng recorded a 4.33 ERA with 142 strikeouts in 95+2⁄3 innings of work. [8] Teng spent the 2022 season with the Double–A Richmond Flying Squirrels, making 28 starts and registering a 6–12 record and 5.22 ERA with a career–high 169 strikeouts in 136+1⁄3 innings pitched. [9]
Teng began the 2023 season back with Double–A Richmond, starting 12 games and posting a 4.75 ERA with 68 strikeouts in 47+1⁄3 innings of work. [10] On June 18, 2023, he was promoted to the Triple–A Sacramento River Cats. [11] In 17 games (16 starts) for Sacramento, Teng logged a 6–5 record and 4.22 ERA with 96 strikeouts across 76 innings pitched.
On November 14, 2023, the Giants added Teng to their 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft. [12] [13] He spent some time in major league spring training, [14] and was optioned to Triple–A Sacramento to begin the 2024 season. [15] On March 29, 2024, Teng was promoted to the major leagues for the first time. [16] [17] Teng made his major league debut in relief of Daulton Jefferies, pitching three innings while yielding four hits and three runs. [18] [19]
Teng played for the Taiwanese national team (Chinese Taipei) in the 2019 Asian Baseball Championship, pitching in the gold medal game against Japan, which Taiwan won. [20] He is included on their roster for the 2023 World Baseball Classic. [21]