Guardians trading Steven Kwan now vs. later gets case made by MLB insider originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
To be clear, it’s still a big if.
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It’s not a given that the Cleveland Guardians will trade Steven Kwan this offseason, or ever.
But if the Guardians decide to trade Kwan, there’s a logical time to do it.
Now beats later when it comes to getting value from other clubs in a trade.
In the offseason, most of the other teams in the league could be interested, which could raise a bidding war. And right now, an acquiring team would get two years of Kwan under his current contract.
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A trade at the upcoming deadline or next winter doesn’t give the acquiring team as much time with the star left fielder and leadoff hitter.
That’s what Mark Feinsand wrote in a new article for MLB.com, essentially pointing out the fact that Kwan’s trade value likely won’t be higher than it is now.
“Kwan is entering the second of his three arbitration years, so while there is no urgency for Cleveland to move him this offseason, his trade value may never be higher,” Feinsand writes. “Kwan has posted an fWAR of at least 3.0 in each of his four years in the league, winning four consecutive Gold Gloves in the process.”
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The Guardians have done this before, trading a talented player away in the winter while they have two years left on their contract.
From a productivity standpoint, it’s hard to see a reason Cleveland should do this. Beyond Jose Ramirez and Kwan, their lineup in 2025 was mostly a wasteland.
Giving Kwan up almost certainly makes the 2026 ballclub worse on paper.
The Guardians feel they have to thread a needle financially relative to some clubs, but their final decision on Kwan will be telling. Because keeping him around appears to be the best way to keep winning, and this is the time they’ve got to make the call one way or the other.
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