It all honestly started with a little harmless deadline day speculation. One of those “what if” scenes that baseball fans love to read. ESPN floated around the idea of several potential moves. One of them being—what if the splashy Dodgers made a play for Guardians, Steven Kwan?

Far-fetched? Not really! It makes sense. LA needs a left fielder, given Michael Conforto’s batting under .200 and struggling defensively. They also need a true leadoff guy, given that even Mookie Betts has not looked like himself this year. So who better than Steven Kwan, right?

The Guardians outfielder is fresh off his second All-Star appearance, and he checks every box from high average to low strikeout rate and Gold Glove defense. One can hear Dodgers fans drooling over him, almost. But well, back in Cleveland, the vibe can be different. Sure, they are under .500 and seemingly sellers. And yes, they have pieces like closer Emmanuel Clase, who could bring real value. But Kwan seems not to be the type they let go of that lightly.

ESPN’s Jesse Rogers pretty much summed it up: everyone feels that shifting Kwan will not be like shifting a player, but shaking a foundation. “I think the closer is the one guy you could trade and still survive, and just cross your fingers that the next man in the ninth inning can give you two months or six weeks, and you could somehow compete. I think you can do that by trading a closer. I don’t know if you can trade Steven Kwan. Trade a Gold Glove-caliber outfielder who leads off and doesn’t strike out. You can’t just replace him. It is easier said than done.”

Even Buster Olney ended up tempering expectations of the other teams, too. He reported that Kwan is the most asked about player on the Cleveland Guardians roster. But it is still unlikely that he would be moved, given he has two and a half years of team control left and has a .288 batting average on the year. But sure, Kwan could bring in a haul. Maybe a top catching prospect like Dalton Rushing or a power bat from the Dodgers’ farm. However, the Cleveland Guardians are not trying to burn it all down. Not yet. So while the other names like Carlos Santana and Lane Thomas might pack their bags, Steven Kwan probably will not.

Chicago Cubs are making noise for the Cleveland Guardians’ star closer.

Now, coming to Emmanuel Clase—the guy every contender seems to have circled in red ink. Turns out that the Cubs have jumped into the mix and become one of the most actively monitoring teams chasing the Guardians closer, as per Francys Romero of BeisbolFR.com. And who can blame them? This is because Clase has been quietly putting his best foot forward in the game.

Since 2021, he has led all of baseball with 180 saves and an eye-watering 1.77 ERA. Yes, he doesn’t rack up strikeouts, but he hardly walks anyone, and he keeps the ball on the ground. It’s a quality every manager would want when the game is on the line. But here is the deal—his contract is a steal deal. Right now, the Guardians’ closer is making $4.5 million. Next year, he would make $6 million, and then there are two more $13 million club options. If you compare that to the $20 million per year of Edwin Diaz or Josh Hader, the comparison is stark.

So it’s no wonder if teams call Cleveland up for Clase. But sure, Jim Bowden mentioned Clase to be tradable, but don’t expect the Guardians to trade him so quickly. The team is just a few games out of the playoff picture; they are not without a chance. But if need be, a deal won’t be cheap. Cleveland might want Chicago’s top outfield prospects like Owen Caissie or Kevin Alcántara. The question is, are the Cubs bold enough to pull that trigger?