Guardians notes: Steven Kwan slumping, but healthy

CLEVELAND – On the just-completed road trip, Guardians left fielder Steven Kwan batted .222 (6-for-27) with no homers and one RBI. Things were even worse for the two-time All-Star in the Chicago White Sox series, as he hit .071 (1-for-14) with no homers or RBIs. Overall, his batting average has dipped to .278 with nine homers, 39 RBIs and 11 stolen bases going into Tuesday's game. Kwan's wrist bothered him earlier in the season and he had an injection. Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt said Kwan is healthy. "Kwanie had a week where he didn't get a bunch of hits and that happens to any hitter on the planet at any given time," he said. "But Kwanie is feeling healthy, he's ready to rock and (I'm) excited to watch him play today." Scorching hot Guardians first baseman Kyle Manzardo, who batted .556 (5-for-9) with two homers and three RBIs against Chicago, is one of Cleveland's hottest hitters. In his last 20 games since July 12 (before Tuesday), he's batting .365 (23-for-63) with seven homers, three doubles and 19 RBIs. "Manzo (has) stepped up in a big way, especially since he returned for the family leave list," Vogt said. "He's been on fire. We're watching his development in front of us. We talked about how he gets a lot of unfair pressure put on him. This guy barely (has) over a year of service time. "(He's) becoming a very consistent, middle-of-the-order bat and continuing to put a ton of work in on his defense (at first). Kyle's at-bats the last month, month-plus have just been phenomenal. He's taken what the pitcher gives him. (If) you make a mistake, he's driving (it) out of the yard. It helps lengthen the lineup and be that consistent protection behind Jose (Ramirez)." Manzardo, who is batting .244 with 20 home runs and 52 RBIs (before Tuesday), has the right temperament. "Manzo has got a steady heartbeat," Vogt said. "He doesn't allow anything to get him up or down. And that's been a learning process, too. Every player goes through that. You don't know how to handle failure. You don't know how to handle a lot of success. You've never been here. Kyle's learned in a really quick way how to temper his emotions and (I'm) really proud of him for that." Top unit Cleveland's bullpen leads the majors with a 2.28 earned run average, opponent batting average at .168 and OPS of .563 since July 1. During that stretch, Erik Sabrowski (1.23 ERA), Jakob Junis (1.32) and Nic Enright (1.80) have sub-2.00 ERAs, while Kolby Allard (2.30) and Matt Festa (2.25) are both under 3.00. "We're seeing a maturation of some young players," Vogt said. "With the bullpen, it's always been next-guy up. They've answered the call." Hard-throwing Emmanuel Clase might have been the best closer in baseball. But since he was suspended, the bullpen has thrived. "We have eight guys in our bullpen," Vogt said. "I couldn't be more prouder of our bullpen." Outfield cannons The Guardians' outfield leads the majors with 27 assists, ahead of Boston's 24. Kwan leads all outfielders with 10 assists, while Nolan Jones is second on the team with six. Means sighting Left-hander John Means, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery, was seen in the Cleveland locker room Tuesday. "He's throwing a bullpen (today)," Vogt said. After that, the Guardians will decide the next step in his progress. He could go on a rehab assignment in the minor leagues. Vogt said he could eventually be given a start in the majors this season. The 6-foot-4, 230-pounder was 23-26 (.469) in seven seasons, all with Baltimore. Means, 32, was 12-11 with a 3.69 ERA with the Orioles in 2019 and hasn't pitched since 2024. Contact Bob Finnan at (440) 329-7135 or rfinnan30@gmail.com.