The Cleveland Guardians were openly negotiating star outfielder Steven Kwan for days, culminating in a crazy trade deadline day that saw him stay with the organization at least for the time being.
The Guardians still have the outfielder for two and a half years, so if they want, they could revisit trade talks in the offseason or before next year’s deadline.
For now, he is a Guardian, and he can help the team contend for a spot in the playoffs this year.
How close did the Guardians come to trading him, though?
President of baseball operations Chris Antonetti did his best to answer that question.
“What I can confirm for Steven is that not only do we have a profound appreciation of what he’s able to contribute on the baseball field and in the clubhouse, but so does the rest of major league baseball,” Guardians insider Chris Assenheimer posted on X, with Antonetti’s words.
How close did Guardians come to trading Steven Kwan?
"What I can confirm for Steven is that not only do we have a profound appreciation of what he's able to contribute on the baseball field and in the clubhouse, but so does the rest of major league baseball." Antonetti.— Chris AssenheimerC-T (@CAwesomeheimer) July 31, 2025
His answer was far from concise, but one can imply that he flirted with the decision of trading him at some point.
The Guardians probably received competitive offers, and at one point earlier in the day, they were considered “likely” to move Kwan, who has a rock-solid 2.7 Wins Above Replacement (WAR) so far this year.
In the end, they were all below the high demands Antonetti and his team had for the two-time All-Star, a highly valuable piece.
Kwan, first baseman Carlos Santana, outfielder Lane Thomas, and reliever Jakob Junis all ended up staying.
Shane Bieber and reliever Paul Sewald were the ones packing their bags and leaving Cleveland for other teams via trade.
The Guardians aren’t in a bad position to try and make a run at October, even if the odds are stacked against them, and managed to add a top pitching prospect in Khal Stephen.
NEXT: Guardians Have A New Top-Ranked Pitching Prospect
