In the weeks leading up to the MLB trade deadline, there were multiple rumors involving Steven Kwan.
The San Diego Padres reportedly made a compelling trade offer, and multiple teams were interested in acquiring his services.
The Cleveland Guardians, however, chose to keep him around for a little longer.
But now that their season is officially over, rumors will flood social media again.
With that in mind, Zachary D. Rymer put together a rather interesting trade proposal.
In his latest column, he predicted that the Guardians could trade him to the Los Angeles Dodgers in return for RHP Emmet Sheehan:
Los Angeles Dodgers Get: LF Steven Kwan
Cleveland Guardians Get: RHP Emmet Sheehan“The position was worth -0.3 rWAR this year, which mostly traces back to Michael Conforto being a bust on a $17 million free-agent deal. He was also part of the reason the Dodgers struggled defensively in the outfield this season, posting -8 Outs Above Average. This is where Kwan would be the best possible upgrade. He’s about to make it four Gold Gloves in a row, and his 29 OAA for the last four seasons give him a laughably large lead over all other left fielders. Yes, the Guardians did pull off an incredible comeback to win the AL Central. But no, it doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll deviate from their standard operating procedure. If the Guardians must trade Kwan, they might as well get something good for him. Sheehan qualifies, as he’s a big-time misser of bats (93rd percentile whiff rate) with club control through 2029,” Rymer wrote.
Truth be told, that doesn’t seem to be in the Guardians’ best interest.
Yes, they have a long history of trading their star players once they start getting a little too expensive, and they’ve failed to secure a contract extension with Kwan.
Then again, there’s no need to rush to move on from the superstar outfielder.
They can still reach a reasonable number, and even if that’s not the case, it feels like they could just get a better return for his services than this.
Of course, Sheehan is a very good player, but the Guardians’ bullpen is pretty decent as things stand now.
Also, this team has needed help in the outfield, so moving on from their best outfielder doesn’t seem to make much sense.
Last but not least, Jose Ramirez just put pressure on the front office to acquire more talent, and trading his best teammate might not be what he has in mind.
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