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CLEVELAND -- It was Aug. 30, when Steven Kwan went into a full-on sprint in the left-center-field gap at Progressive Field. The Guardians’ left fielder was giving chase to a line drive off the bat of Seattle first baseman Josh Naylor.
Kwan covered 81 feet to make the catch on the warning track with a full-extension dive. He momentarily laid on the dirt, before he bounced to his feet to high-five center fielder Nolan Jones. Starter Gavin Williams stood on the mound and raised both fists in the air.
“That was unbelievable,” manager Stephen Vogt said that night. “I mean, he’s Gold Glove for a reason, right?”
A three-time Gold Glove Award winner, in fact, and Kwan could soon add another. The 28-year-old was named an American League finalist in left field for the honor last week, alongside fellow Cleveland nominees José Ramírez (third base), Daniel Schneemann (utility) and Carlos Santana (first base).
Though the Guardians released Santana on Aug. 28 and he signed with the Cubs four days later, he is an AL finalist behind his work at first base over his 116 games with Cleveland.
Kwan, meanwhile, appears to have a good chance to win his fourth Gold Glove Award in as many seasons in the big leagues. Doing so would place him in exclusive company. Kenny Lofton is the only outfielder in Cleveland franchise history to win the award four times.
This past season, Kwan led all players in the Majors in Defensive Runs Saved, (+22, according to FanGraphs). Among left fielders, he ranked first in Fielding Run Value (+12), and he finished tied for first with the Brewers’ Isaac Collins in Outs Above Average (+6). Kwan also led the Majors with 13 outfield assists.
Memorably, two of those came on June 17 at Oracle Park during the Guardians' 3-2 win over the Giants.
“Defense never slumps, is what my dad said,” Kwan said that night. “But you have to keep working at it every day.”
That is the heart of Kwan’s stellar defensive play, and it was on display day in and day out this season.
When the Guardians were on the field doing pregame work, you would consistently find Kwan in left field. There, he would track fly balls hit during batting practice, or from outfield and baserunning coach JT Maguire, to get a good idea of how the ball was carrying.
That pregame work also afforded Kwan reps playing fly balls that deflected off Progressive Field’s 19-foot left-field wall. He has turned that into an art form. All season, he showed his knack for knowing exactly how a fly ball would carrom off that wall, which consistently allowed him to get the ball back to the infield quickly.
It’s no surprise that Kwan led all fielders by preventing seven extra runs by baserunners.
“We say this all the time, and I try to really tell him: He is the standard,” Maguire said this summer. “Anything that he does from a work standpoint or an in-game standpoint, he sets the standard for the rest of the team on how to work, on how to play the right way.
“He always just has a knack for doing the right things at the right time.”
Kwan has continually credited Maguire for the work he does behind the scenes, and for how his preparation each game helps Guardians fielders be in the right positions to make plays.
It all soon could culminate in Kwan taking home some hardware once again.