Guardians Rumors: Guardians “trying to move” these two All-Stars 

We’ve officially reached the point in the trade deadline season where the rumors are flying and the transactions are starting. And while the Guardians haven’t been involved in a deal just yet, it seems like a move is all but guaranteed at this point. 

We got a little more evidence of that on Wednesday afternoon when MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand reported the Guardians were “trying to move” both Shane Bieber and Steven Kwan. 

Guardians “trying to move” Steven Kwan and Shane Bieber 

While Feinsand’s report doesn’t confirm anything in regard to a potential move regarding either player, a report like his always seems to be the calm before the trade storm. 

Teams have been inquiring about Kwan since the start of July, but the trade rumors around him reached a fever pitch earlier this week after Emmanuel Clase’s suspension for sports betting. 

He’d be the best player available at the deadline considering his strong batting profile (.286 batting average), defensive profile (three-time Gold Glove winner) and team control (he won’t be a free agent until 2028). 

He’s been the heartbeat of the Guardians’ lineup since he earned his first MLB call-up in 2022, and would be a incredible addition to any contender. 

The Padres, Dodgers and Padres have all been connected to Kwan over the past 48 hours, and he would help make any of those teams a World Series favorite. 

The other side of the coin is Bieber, who threw four strong innings in a rehab start at Double-A Akron on Wednesday. He hasn’t appeared in a big league game since April 2024, but he’s a former Cy Young winner who is one of the top-three arms available at this year’s deadline. 

If the Guardians truly are trying to trade both of them, it’s fair to wonder if they’re offering them up as separate assets or in one combined deal. Either player could net the Guardians a solid return of top prospects in return, but a combined deal for both of them would require a general return that few teams would be able to offer. 

It would also generate a sell-off we haven’t seen in Cleveland in quite some time. While they traded away MLB pieces in 2021 and ‘23, none of the players traded away at either of those deadlines were on the same level of Kwan and Bieber. 

Bieber likely would have been traded at last year’s deadline had he not gotten injured, but this is the first time that Kwan’s name has surfaced in trade rumors. According to Feinsand’s report, those rumors could result in something tangible very soon.