Steven Kwan has spent his entire big league career as a fixture in Cleveland’s outfield, but the shape of his next contract situation is starting to draw real attention around the league. With free agency now just one season away and no extension talks appearing close to fruition, one national voice is floating the idea that the Guardians could look to move the two time All Star this winter rather than let him walk for nothing down the road.
Mark Feinsand laid out the thinking in a recent piece looking ahead to the offseason trade market.
“The two-time All-Star has been dangled as a trade candidate in the past, and with only one year remaining until free agency and no extension seemingly in sight, Cleveland could look to move Kwan to bring back younger, more controllable talent. Kwan’s counting stats are down this season (two home runs, 27 RBIs, 72 runs scored in 136 games), but his .371 on-base percentage and 4.4 bWAR are his highest since his 2022 rookie season,” Feinsand wrote.
Kwan is hitting for a lower average than usual this season and has driven in fewer runs than in years past, numbers that could make a casual observer wonder if his best days are behind him. Dig a little deeper, though, and the picture looks very different. His on base percentage sits north of .370, his highest mark since his rookie season back in 2022, and his overall value by wins above replacement is right there with that same rookie year as well. He also ranks among the very best hitters in the sport in strikeout rate and walk rate, showing the same elite plate discipline that has defined his approach since he arrived in the majors.
Then there is the defense, which remains as much a part of his identity as anything he does at the plate. Kwan continues to rank near the top of the league in outs saved above average, a big reason he already carries four Gold Glove awards on his resume. A player who controls the strike zone at an elite level, gets on base at a high clip, and still covers as much ground in the outfield as anyone in baseball is not an easy player to simply let go, even with a lighter power number attached to his stat line this year.
For now, Kwan remains squarely focused on helping Cleveland chase a playoff spot in the season’s final stretch, and how the front office ultimately handles his situation will not become clear until the offseason actually arrives. But with his name surfacing on national trade radar pieces this early in September, it is a storyline Guardians fans should expect to hear plenty more about in the months ahead, regardless of how the next few weeks of games play out.
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