Ole Miss Baseball Reportedly Adds Shortstop Transfer Luke Cheng

The Ole Miss Rebels have added their third transfer of this cycle.

Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco (5) makes a pitching change against Mississippi State at Swayze Field in Oxford, Miss., on Friday, Apr. 12, 2024. / Bruce Newman/Special to the Clarion

The Ole Miss Rebels have reportedly added another transfer to their roster for the 2025 season in the form of shortstop Luke Cheng of Illinois State. 247Sports was the first to report the news on Monday.

As of this writing, Cheng himself has yet to make an official announcement of his commitment.

Cheng joins RHP Will McCausland and catcher Collin Reuter as transfers who have pledged to the Rebels this offseason. The shortstop spent four seasons at Illinois State with his junior and senior campaigns being shortened due to injury.

So far in his college career, Cheng has hit for an average of .270, putting up 99 hits, 56 RBI and one home run. Defensively, he holds a career fielding percentage of .944, an area that Ole Miss struggled in at times during the 2024 season.

Cheng's addition is some much-needed good news on the transfer front for the Rebels as they have lost some key pieces to the portal in recent days, the biggest of which has been third baseman and power hitter Andrew Fischer. Ole Miss opted to retain head coach Mike Bianco for the 2025 season, and it will look to return to the postseason in 2025 for the first season since they won the national championship in 2022.