With the Cleveland Guardians playing extremely poorly ahead of the All-Star break, rumors of several of their players, including Steven Kwan, becoming available ahead of the trade deadline emerged. Philadelphia Phillies fans, understandably, began salivating, dreaming of a deadline deal that brought Kwan and Emmanuel Clase to Philadelphia, filling two major needs on the team's roster with All-Stars. Well, ESPN's Buster Olney poured cold water on Kwan being moved to Philadelphia — or any team, for that matter — on Tuesday.
The player asked about the most on the Guardians' roster is Steven Kwan, but given that he's 2 1/2 years away from free agency, it's unlikely he'll be traded, according to sources. His slash line this year: .288/.352/.398, with 11 SB.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) July 22, 2025
Olney reveals that it's unlikely Kwan gets traded ahead of the deadline, and as disappointing as that might be for Phillies fans, it makes sense. Kwan is a great player who, as Olney noted, isn't hitting free agency until after the 2027 campaign.
While it stings knowing that a Kwan trade is nothing more than a pipe dream, there are other fish out there. One under-the-radar target — Los Angeles Angels outfielder Taylor Ward — would be an excellent addition for the Phillies and allow the fan base to forget all about Kwan.
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Taylor Ward might be better fit for Phillies than Steven Kwan
He isn't as big of a name as Kwan, but Ward has been a high-end outfielder for several years now. An argument can absolutely be made that he'd be a better fit in Philadelphia than Kwan for a couple of reasons.
First and foremost, Ward offers more of what the Phillies need offensively. Kwan gets on base a lot and has a far better hit tool than Ward, but he has just six home runs and 32 RBI on the year compared to Ward's 23 and 76, respectively. Kwan gets on base more, but Ward does far more damage at the plate. The Phillies need more home runs than singles.
The Phillies are just 16th in the Majors in home runs and 12th in OPS, while they're fifth in on-base percentage. They've been getting on base enough, but haven't been scoring enough, largely due to their inability to hit for power. Kyle Schwarber is the only hitter on their roster with more than 13 home runs right now. Bryce Harper would be past that mark if he were fully healthy this season, but the Phillies don't have another dangerous power hitter. Ward would give Philadelphia an elite power bat. They need that more than on-base ability.
Second, Ward is right-handed, while Kwan is left-handed. The team's two best hitters and only major power threats, Harper and Schwarber, are left-handed. Adding a big right-handed bat would give the Phillies' lefty-heavy lineup far better balance. Instead of stacking Kwan, Harper and Schwarber, all left-handed hitters, in the first three or four spots of their lineup, Philadelphia can stick Ward in and add more balance.
He isn't as popular, but Ward might be a better fit than Kwan. He also should be far easier to acquire.
Odds of a Taylor Ward trade are far higher than Steven Kwan
Ward, like Kwan, would come with additional club control, but he only has one extra year to Kwan's two. That makes a difference, and increases the urgency for the Angels to part with Ward. I'm not convinced that the Angels are going to sell as they're still just 4.0 games behind the third Wild Card spot in the AL, but if they do, Ward figures to be available.
If he is made available, it'd be foolish to rule the Phillies out. They've acquired Brandon Marsh, Noah Syndergaard and Carlos Estevez in deals with the Angels in recent years, so it wouldn't be surprising to see the Phillies make another deal with Los Angeles.
Kwan would've been fun, but Ward might be even better for this Phillies team. Hopefully, if he's made available, the Phillies can find a way to get a deal done.