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Guardians president Chris Antonetti explains Shane Bieber trade, not trading Steven Kwan
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- Guardians president Chris Antonetti explains Shane Bieber trade, not trading Steven Kwan
CLEVELAND — The Guardians made two deadline deals but ultimately opted to hold onto their biggest trade chip.
Ahead of the July 31 trade deadline, the Guardians dealt former Cy Young Award winner Shane Bieber to the Toronto Blue Jays and reliever Paul Sewald to the Detroit Tigers . But, despite a flurry of interest, All-Star left fielder Steven Kwan is staying in Cleveland , as the Guardians front office chose to keep their leadoff hitter and Gold Glove outfielder in town.
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They also claimed reliever Carlos Hernandez off waivers from the Tigers.
President of baseball operations Chris Antonetti met with local reporters via Zoom shortly after the deadline passed. Here's what he had to say.
Opening statement on the Shane Bieber trade:
"I'll start with the trade for Shane. Obviously it's a very difficult one for us. As everyone knows, we really appreciate all of Shane's contributions to our organization and his time with us. We appreciate the fact that he trusted us to help him continue on his path back to being a successful major league starting pitcher and are grateful at the impact that he made along the way.
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"But we're also really excited to be able to add Khal Stephen to our organization. Khal is a 6-foot-4 right-handed pitcher from Mississippi State out of the draft last year. In fact, we did our best to try to select him, but just didn't have that opportunity. So we're excited to add him to the organization. He's currently rehabbing from a minor shoulder injury but should be back pitching likely at the Double-A level before the end of the season. And another guy we're excited to add to our organization to add to our upper level starting pitching depth."
How did the Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz news impact your direction at the deadline?
"Yeah, there are a lot of different considerations that we had to weigh around this time of year. The unexpected developments recently were certainly one of them, but in the end I think we feel good about the roster that we have for the balance of 2025 and are excited about our future."
How close were you to trading Steven Kwan ?
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"I think the best way to share that is — and I actually talked to Steven a little while ago and shared the same thing — was that what I can confirm for Steven is that not only do we have a profound appreciation for what he's able to contribute on the baseball field and in the clubhouse, but so does the rest of Major League Baseball. But we are really excited that he will continue to be with us moving forward."
What do you think of your playoff possibilities after the deadline?
"I'm not sure that they're materially different. What I would share is we continue to believe in the group of players that are here, not just at the major league level, but players that we think can possibly contribute from the upper levels to our minor league system. So hopefully we play our best baseball from here on out and make things interesting heading into September."
What did you like about Khal Stephen in college?
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"There's lots to like with Khal. First and foremost, he's a big physical starting pitcher with a good frame. He's got a very deep arsenal of pitches. It's a five-pitch mix. He recently this year added a split-finger fastball that's added another element to his game, and we think he's a guy that's capable of not only logging innings at the major league level but pitching pretty effectively. So we'll be excited to continue to partner with Khal and his development as he progresses towards that end."
Where would Khal Stephen likely end up?
"Likely Double-A. He made one start in Double-A. He had pitched really well in High-A, was promoted to Double-A prior to having that shoulder discomfort, so he would likely join Akron once he's ready to go."
With Steven Kwan, do you prefer to talk about contract extensions only during the offseason?
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"We don't have any hard and fast rules about that, but what we found oftentimes is that when you try to explore contract extensions during the season, it can be a distraction. So that's why we've typically preferred for that to happen in the offseason or in spring training."
How do you scout the Twins tomorrow?
"We have a lot of work to do to reacclimate ourselves with what their roster will be."
How do you view C.J. Kayfus, since it looks like he's played more outfield lately?
"As I shared before, C.J.'s made great progress this year and his continued his development as a player, both with his progression offensively but now defensively, where he's added some versatility. So we've talked about this a few times in the past, the more positions players can play capably, the better chances they'll have to impact the major league team, and C.J.'s among that group of players in Columbus that we think has a chance to help us in the second half."
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What was the process like trading a player like Shane Bieber still undergoing rehab?
"I think with the way information has progressed over the course of the last 10 or 12 years, teams were able to get a really good feel of where Shane was in his rehab progression. They were able to not only get the video but get all the pitch metrics in addition to having maybe some [information]. So I think that there were teams that felt good about where Shane was in his rehab and what the path for him might be moving forward."
What did trade talks with Shane Bieber really intensify?
"Oh, boy, I think with all teams we probably had some initial check-ins back towards the end of June, early July, and then those talks have some ebbs and flows to them leading up to the deadline. And there's a bit of a lull when the draft happens, and the frequency picks up after that. But as Shane was progressing through his rehab, [Blue Jays GM] Ross [Atkins] continued to reach out and check in and express interest."
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Did you have to send any money to Toronto as part of this deal?
"No."
What'd you like about Carlos Hernandez?
"He's got a power arm with really good stuff. I think what we'll try to do is partner with Carlos to help translate that stuff into more consistent performance, but there's some great ingredients there to work with."
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Guardians president Chris Antonetti explains trade deadline decisions
