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Cleveland Guardians LF Steven Kwan.
It’s no secret that the Los Angeles Dodgers are in the market for an upgrade in the outfield. Kike Hernandez is a free agent, Teoscar Hernandez is inconsistent and Andy Pages has been unplayable in the playoffs the last two years.
There’s been a lot of talk regarding the Dodgers potentially going after Kyle Tucker, but he could prove to be too expensive. Instead, the team could look to the trade market for an upgrade.
Cleveland Guardians left fielder Steven Kwan is expected to be on the trade block. He’s been an All-Star in back-to-back years and has won four straight Gold Glove Awards. He’s one of the best defensive left fielders in MLB. He doesn’t have a huge bat, but he’s solid at the plate. The Dodgers have plenty of big bats in their lineup, so getting a defensive upgrade in the outfield would be welcome.
Jim Bowden of The Athletic pitched a trade that sends Dodgers outfielder Josue De Paula to Cleveland for Kwan.
“The Dodgers will love the Gold Glove-winning Kwan, who at the plate also provides them more traffic for the dangerous middle of their lineup, while the Guardians win the deal in the long run by gaining a potential middle-of-the-order star in De Paula,” Bowden wrote.
De Paula Has Big-Time Potential
Kwan is a proven player who would be an immediate upgrade for the Dodgers. However, giving up De Paula would be a tough pill to swallow. He has the potential to be a star player.
FanGraphs named De Paula as the Dodgers’ No. 1 prospect.
“De Paula’s combination of present raw power and long-term physical projection give him a great shot to develop 40-homer raw power at peak, though it’s debatable whether his hitting skills are the kind that will allow him to actualize all of that raw thump in games,” FanGraphs wrote. “So far his raw power (De Paula turned 20 in the middle of the 2025 season, and his measureable pop is already a shade above the big league average) has played down in games, and he slashed .260/.412/.399 in 150 High-A games between 2024 and 2025 (a hamstring issue snuffed out his would-be Fall League stint). One might assume some of that was due to the miserable early-season weather in the Midwest League, but De Paula’s slug was well under .400 throughout the middle two thirds of the season.”
Dodgers Are in Win-Now Mode
De Paula has a chance to end up being an All-Star player, but he’s also just 20 years old. It’s unlikely he’ll have a chance to play meaningful games for the Dodgers next season.
The problem for him is that the Dodgers are in the midst of a dynasty. The team is hot, and they’re only focused on winning championships. If trading De Paula allows them to add a player who makes the team better right now, they’re going to do it.
At the same time, the Dodgers already have so much talent, but many of their best players are getting older. If the Dodgers don’t want to go through a franchise lull, they need to have an influx of young talent eventually.
Austin Boyd has covered the Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Lakers for Heavy.com since 2019. A Los Angeles native now based in Las Vegas, his featured work at Heavy includes interviews with NFL stars Darren Waller and Joe Montana, and a behind-the-scenes look at “The Shop.” More about Austin Boyd
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