Guardians' Steven Kwan shows kindness on the most stressful day of his career

Billy Heyen

Guardians' Steven Kwan shows kindness on the most stressful day of his career image

By midday Thursday, it seemed more of a matter of "to whom" than "if" Steven Kwan would be traded.

The Cleveland Guardians didn't have a game, so full focus in their front office was surely on the trade deadline. They did send Shane Bieber to the Toronto Blue Jays, but in the end, Kwan wasn't traded.

The star left fielder wasn't on his phone all day keeping track of what was going on, though. He was hosting a baseball camp.

The Columbus Dispatch's Adam Jardy shared details of the camp on X:

"Steven Kwan had a baseball camp today. We bought Liam a ticket for Christmas. He’s been looking forward to it for months. It poured and we couldn’t play, so Kwan met w/each camper and took individual photos on maybe the most stressful day of his career. It meant a lot to the kids."

MORE: Mariners' Eugenio Suarez trade rectifies a $15 million mistake

It takes a special human to have that approach even as trade rumors swirl around them.

It's easy to forget that all the trades on deadline day impact lives in countless ways, from housing to families and more.

Kwan could've been moments away from having to move across the country to leave the only MLB team he's ever known, but that didn't stop him from showing grace at his baseball camp.

MORE: Yankees staged the most persistent comeback in MLB history

Cleveland may be only on the fringes of contention this season, especially after closer Emmanuel Clase was placed on leave as part of a sports betting investigation.

But Kwan is under contract for a few more seasons, and he's a Gold Glover and All Star. It would've been tough to see his Guardians tenure end amid this rough stretch.

Instead, he's sticking around. There can be more baseball camps, more moments of kindness and grace, because Kwan got through the toughest day of his MLB life, and he's still wearing a Cleveland hat.

MORE MLB NEWS:

Billy Heyen

Billy Heyen is a freelance writer with The Sporting News. He is a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who has written about many sports and fantasy sports for The Sporting News. Sports reporting work has also appeared in a number of newspapers, including the Sandusky Register and Rochester Democrat & Chronicle