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Cleveland Guardians agree to 1-year deals for 2025 with Steven Kwan, Lane Thomas
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- Cleveland Guardians agree to 1-year deals for 2025 with Steven Kwan, Lane Thomas
The last of the Cleveland Guardians ' remaining arbitration-eligible players have deals for 2025.
The Guardians agreed to one-year deals with outfielders Lane Thomas ($7.825 million) and Steven Kwan ($4.175 million) to avoid arbitration. The deals were first reported by MLB.com .
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Thomas is entering his final year of club control and can become a free agent after the 2025 season. He was acquired at last year's trade deadline and struggled after being dealt, posting just a .657 OPS in 53 games with the Guardians in the regular season.
But Thomas heated up in the postseason and launched a mammoth grand slam off Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers in Game 5 of the ALDS that propelled the Guardians to the ALCS . In 10 playoff games, he hit two homers and drove in nine runs.
In 2025, Thomas figures to continue to act as the primary center fielder, though he could also move over to right field depending on the roster construction and how things unfold this spring.
Kwan had a tremendous first half last year, briefly flirting with a .400 season en route to an All-Star selection . He finished the season hitting .292 with a .368 on-base percentage along with a career-high 14 home runs and his third consecutive Gold Glove . He was a key member of the club's power surge that boosted the lineup's run production.
Cleveland Guardians' Lane Thomas reacts after a two-run home run by teammate Jhonkensy Noel during the ninth inning against the New York Yankees during Game 3 of the American League Championship Series on Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland, Ohio.
Guardians payroll in 2025
The Guardians have an estimated 2025 Opening Day payroll of $96 million, according to FanGraphs .
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Cleveland had nine arbitration-eligible players when this offseason began — Josh Naylor , Nick Sandlin , Eli Morgan , James Karinchak , Thomas, Triston McKenzie , Sam Hentges , Ben Lively and Kwan.
Naylor was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks in a deal that brought back pitcher Slade Cecconi and led to the free-agent signing of Carlos Santana .
Sandlin and Morgan were both traded as well, with the former being involved in the Andres Gimenez deal with the Toronto Blue Jays .
Reliever James Karinchak, whose career has taken a tremendous nosedive, was released.
That left the Guardians with five players to sign in order to avoid arbitration: Thomas, McKenzie ($1.95 million), Hentges ($1.338 million), Lively ($2.25 million) and Kwan.
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Kwan was projected to receive $4.3 million in arbitration, according to MLB Trade Rumors' projections .
(This story has been updated with new information.)
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Lane Thomas, Steven Kwan sign 1-year deal for 2025 with Guardians
