Guardians leadoff hitter Steven Kwan hits reset button for playoffs – News-Herald

The Guardians and Tigers are both 0-0 at the start of the best-of-five ALDS, just the way Steven Kwan likes it.

The Guardians’ All-Star left fielder posted a .374 batting average in June, but then saw a gradual decline, posting a .250 batting average in July, a .207 batting average in August and a .195 batting average in September.

How important is Kwan to the Guardians? He hit .348 in 65 games the Guardians won and just .219 in 54 games they lost.

Kwan was on the injured list twice. He was sidelined for most of May due to a hamstring injury. He was on the 10-day injured list in September with a back injury.

The Guardians last played a game on September 28th when they lost 4-3 to the Astros. That meant six days without a game before facing the Tigers in the ALDS opener at Progressive Field on Oct. 5 at 1:08 p.m. Manager Stephen Vogt compared the Oct. 1 workout to the start of spring training, as the Guardians try not to get rusty.

“Vogt really made it clear, and it was good for him to say it,” Kwan said Oct. 3 in the Guardians clubhouse. “Whether you had the year you liked or not, it doesn’t matter. In the postseason, everyone starts 0-0 and you kind of reinvent yourself. That’s a really cool way to look at things.”

Injuries limited Kwan to 122 games this season after playing 147 as a rookie in 2022 and 158 last season. Still, he hit a career-high 14 home runs in 2024, three more than his home run total from his first two years.

Eleven of Kwan’s home runs were solo hits, including three as the game’s leadoff batter. Four more led off an inning.

“He was our catalyst and spark plug at the top,” Vogt said after practice on October 3rd. “Kwanny just has to go out there and be him. He did that for us most of the year.”

Kwan didn’t have much success against the Tigers during the regular season. He faced them in ten games and posted a .220 batting average with one home run and two RBI. At bats, he hit safely nine times in 41 games.

“My season was kind of a rollercoaster,” Kwan said. “Baseball is a natural failure sport. I think it’s natural to put yourself down, especially when you know what you can achieve because you ask for more.

“But we won as a team. I think when you win and other people do well, that really helps.”

Kwan said the hamstring injury and back injury that temporarily sidelined him in 2024 were “avoidable.” He said he will work on his conditioning in the offseason to ensure he can play as many games as he did last season.

Tigers at Guardians

What: ALDS Game 1

When: 1:08 p.m., October 5th

Where: Progressive Field

TV: TBS

Radio: WTAM AM-1100, WMMS-FM 100.7, WARF-AM 1350