GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- With runners on first and second and one out in the fourth inning on Wednesday, Steven Kwan fielded a single by Mark Canha and fired a strike toward home plate. The throw (which was cut off by first baseman CJ Kayfus) allowed the Guardians to temporarily keep the Rangers off the scoreboard.
“I think it was Hedgey [catcher Austin Hedges] who goes, ‘Weird. Kwan’s good at center field, too,’” manager Stephen Vogt said.
A four-time Gold Glove Award winner in left field, Kwan is taking reps in center this spring in a potential step toward him playing there during the regular season. The 28-year-old made his first appearance there this spring in Wednesday’s 11-4 loss to the Rangers at Goodyear Ballpark.
Kwan played five innings in center before his day of work was complete. He fielded four Rangers singles, but did not have any fly balls hit his way. Amid the excitement he felt pregame over his spring debut in center, Kwan recognizes he’ll need a steady diet of opportunities.
“I think we need to stress test as much as possible,” Kwan said. “The biggest thing is, obviously I'm really excited. But at the end of the day, if we find out that I'm hurting the team being in center, then we need to find that out sooner than later.”
Trusting in Kwan’s track record will tell you this will work. This is a new opportunity for him, but it’s not new territory. Before his limited duty in center in the Majors (eight games), he made 152 appearances there in the Minors and played the position extensively in college.
Kwan isn’t a novice in center. Guardians outfield and baserunning coach JT Maguire knows that as well as anyone. He has had an intimate perspective on Kwan’s career. Maguire did MLB Draft assessments on him while Kwan played collegiately at Oregon State and later coached Kwan in the Minor Leagues -- including a stint as his bench coach with Triple-A Columbus in 2021.
“So I know Steven Kwan as a center fielder,” Maguire said. “I also know him as a left fielder. So I was pretty pumped when he approached us about wanting to play center field, because I've always known that he can play it.”
The key this spring is Kwan reacquainting himself with the nuances of playing center and tapping into his muscle memory.
“It's really just like getting his feet back to where he used to be,” Magiure said. “I wouldn't say relearning the position, because he still knows how to play it. He just hasn't played it for the last five years.”
Maguire noted Kwan has been taking a lot of live reads in center during batting practice this spring. Their work has been focused on areas that Kwan hasn’t been exposed to while playing left field. A center fielder has to track balls hit in the gap to both their left and right. Left fielders do not have a gap on their right due to the presence of the foul line.
Kwan has also become an expert at playing balls off Progressive Field’s 19-foot wall in left field. But he’ll experience more longer-ranging plays in center due to the two gaps, and must get his body prepared for those moments. Communication will be crucial, given he’ll have a player on each side of him, and the flight on balls hit to center varies compared to the corners.
“From the corners, you don't know if the guy got around it,” Kwan said. “You don’t know if a righty got around or stayed inside of it, [if] it's gonna have that hook or the tail to it. Center field, you get that read a lot earlier. Yeah, you’ve got to run a little further, but that makes it easier.”
What we know will translate from left to center is Kwan’s arm accuracy and his reaction time. According to Statcast, Kwan’s jump was above average last season. He covered 0.5 feet more in the right direction within the first three seconds after a pitch was released. That was tied for 31st among 93 qualifying outfielders.
“He's elite in his jumps and his reactions,” Maguire said. “He's elite in his first-step efficiency.”
Kwan and the Guardians will gain more information with each appearance he makes in center this spring. But he has a foundation to build upon to succeed here.
“In the back of my head, I always knew that he could still play it,” Maguire said. “So it's cool that he wants to play that position and test himself out of it. And if it works out in Spring Training, awesome.”