The New York Yankees will have to make several major offseason moves this winter. General manager Brian Cashman is expected to target multiple key players in the coming months. At the moment, there are several glaring holes in New York’s roster. This includes bullpen help, catcher, third base, second base (assuming Jazz Chisholm departs), and center field.
With all of this in mind, The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner has published a new piece detailing how the Yankees can get back to the World Series in 2027. Among the proposed moves was an interesting deal involving Steven Kwan. The Cleveland Guardians have been linked with offloading the All-Star outfielder as he heads to his final year of arbitration. He is projected to earn around $10 million next season.
Cleveland has a recent history of trading players before they are due for big pay raises (Andrés Giménez and Josh Naylor). If so, the New York Yankees are being urged to trade for the Gold Glove-winning Kwan. As the reporter points out, New York had one of the worst center-field defenses in 2026. Trent Grisham was typically deployed in the role, but his $22 million deal is now expired.
For now, former number two prospect Spencer Jones is penciled in as the team’s starting center fielder in 2027. This, however, is not an ideal situation. While he is a quality power hitter, Jones struggled in the position this season. In fact, the budding star posted a negative defensive runs saved above average in center field. As a result, the two teams could work out a swap deal for the outfielders.
New York Yankees Would Receive a Boost From Steven Kwan’s Offense and Defense
While the New York Yankees would be a good fit for Kwan, the Guardians could certainly use Jones’ power at the plate. Cleveland’s offense recorded just 162 home runs and posted a combined .380 slugging rate in 2026. Both of these figures were the fourth-worst numbers in baseball this season. Although Jones has limitations in the field, he did have a .429 slugging and .742 OPS in his MLB rookie campaign.
Kwan, on the other hand, would be a solid table-setter atop New York’s lineup. Unlike the Guardians, the Yankees have plenty of power on their roster. However, potentially having the veteran Gold Glover hitting leadoff ahead of Cody Bellinger, Aaron Judge, and Ben Rice would certainly be beneficial. Kwan’s .382 on-base rate tied Mike Trout for seventh-best in the entire league in 2026.
Trading away Jones so early in his career would be a risky move by the New York Yankees. After all, he did just hit 35 home runs between AA and AAA in 2025. Nevertheless, Cashman needs to balance out his lineup, and landing Kwan would be a solid offseason move.
New York Could Give Cleveland What it Wants
Although a swap deal could make sense for both teams, top Guardians exec Chris Antonetti has recently poured cold water on a trade involving Kwan. According to Cleveland.com, Antonetti proclaimed that he expects the star “to be a big part of a contending team next year.”
Despite this, the exec would almost certainly still listen to trade offers, considering the star could leave for free after 2027. The New York Yankees will have plenty of competition for the Gold Glover, but could have an upper hand in the situation by dangling Jones.
Yankees Linked to Trading Star Slugger for Gold Glove Outfielder