Jul 6, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians left fielder Steven Kwan (38) catches a ball hit by Detroit Tigers second baseman Colt Keith (not pictured) during the third inning at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
A few weeks ago, I thought our very own Tim Kelly was out of his mind.
O.K. sometimes I still feel that way.
But it was July 7, to be exact, that he wrote a story suggesting the Phillies pursue Cleveland Guardians outfielder Steven Kwan.
My thought at the time was that there was no way Cleveland would trade Kwan.
Yes, the Guardians are historically a team that moves on from talent before they get a huge payday, and yes, they were scuffling a bit and not quite living up to their expectations at that point.
See, in my mind at the time, the Guardians would have laughed at this suggestion. After all, Kwan is signed through this year at a ridiculously affordable $4.18 million. He also has two more arbitration years left before he could become a free agent in 2028.
A 27-year-old, All-Star and Gold Glove-winning outfielder who is a contact hitter that doesn't strike out (only 37 times so far this season in 443 plate appearances) with two-plus years of control? Not even a guaranteed seller would do that.
Not to mention, these same Guardians were in the ALCS a year ago, and despite their underwhelming results, had the easiest second-half schedule in baseball, and were getting an ace-level starting pitcher back in Shane Bieber as well.
The Guardians were not going to sell Kwan. I was sure of it on July 7th. Hell, I was sure of it three days ago.
Tim didn't bet me on it. Maybe he should have. After all, it was alleged "betting on it" that may make Tim look smart.
An ongoing investigation by Major League Baseball into potential sports betting violations has already resulted in two Cleveland pitchers - Luis Ortiz and closer Emmanuel Clase - who the Phillies were also linked to as a possible trade deadline acquisition before Sunday - being put on paid leave into late August.
The Guardians said in a statement that were informed that "no additional players or club personnel are expected to be impacted."
Eh... not so fast:
SOURCE: Other Guardians pitchers are being investigated for MLB's sports-betting. According to the source, the names of the pitchers involved would be revealed in the coming days. They will be placed on non-disciplinary paid leave, as has been the case with Luis Ortiz and…
Cleveland is probably toast now. How many pitchers could they possibly lose here? And this could be the biggest sports scandal the league has had since Pete Rose. Rocky times in Northeastern Ohio.
As such, the Guardians need to consider blowing up the roster and starting over. And that includes trading guys like Kwan and Bieber.
Unsurprisingly, the Phillies are one of the teams heavily interested in Kwan, and the Guardians are now listening.
According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription required) the Phillies, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres and Toronto Blue Jays are the four teams in the mix for Kwan.
Kwan wouldn't be a power bat upgrade for the Phillies. And he's not right-handed. Those two things seemed to be the desired order of things the Phillies should acquire to improve their lineup.
But, Kwan brings more than just power to the table than a guy with power or balance to the lineup.
He's productive. He gets on base. He makes contact, so even his outs often move baserunners. He's not lightning fast, but he can steal bags and he's a very good baserunner. And most importantly, he's sensational defensively.
Steven Kwan is a gold glove LF for a reason.#GuardsBall pic.twitter.com/Oa0TKRnItb
His fWAR is 2.7. The only player ahead of him this season who is expected to be traded is Eugenio Suarez at 3.1 - and Suarez is getting more tests today to see if there's any additional damage to his hand after getting hit by a pitch on Monday, which could impact his tradability before Thursday.
Defensively, Kwan is fifth-best in baseball among outfielders in defensive runs saved at plus-13.
Does everyone know that this man has won a gold glove every single year as a pro
Not just the big leagues, as a PRO. Steven Kwan is the truth in left pic.twitter.com/lFOb9oEK9m
Offensively, he is slashing .287/.351/.411 so far this season for an OPS of .762, which would be fourth-best on the Phillies behind Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper and Trea Turner. Being left-handed puts the Phillies in a little bit of a pickle as you would assume Kwan would instantly be a leadoff hitter with Turner, Harper and Schwarber likely to follow in order. It's not 4-D chess-like strategy to think opposing teams would load up on lefties to face that part of the lineup as often as possible.
But we already know Schwarber and Harper hit lefties, and while Kwan hits righties better than lefties, he's not under water against left-handed pitching. This season he's down slightly (.257/.307/.301, .658 OPS) from his career numbers against lefties (.278/.337/.351, .688 OPS), but its only been 151 plate appearances this season, so the difference could be deemed insignificant.
Sure, you'd like more pop against lefties, but he does hit righties very well and he saves a lot of runs in the field, which makes up some of the difference.
Steven Kwan - the American League hero pic.twitter.com/cqkeAeGNed
The Phillies would still have to be aggressive to get Kwan - especially to beat out the three teams they are reportedly in contention with - not to mention, the Guardians aren't just going to give him away, no matter how complicated things get with the sports betting investigation.
It would likely take two of their top 10 prospects plus more to get him. But, would a package highlighted by, say, Aidan Miller and Mick Abel make sense?
It sure would - because of the control for a proven All-Star. Not only would he help the Phillies win now, but in future seasons as well.
The Phillies have other holes to fill as well, but Kwan could be the big ticket item that everyone wants that didn't really seem attainable until a couple days ago.
Now, he definitely feels like a good bet.
