Opening Day Leadoff Hitter
Steven Kwan is the Opening Day lead off hitter for the third consecutive season, becoming the sixth player in franchise history to hold that role on Opening Day in three straight years.
The others:
Tag: Steven Kwan
30 HR Seasons and no one else over 15
Jose Ramirez and Josh Naylor each topped 30 home runs in 2024, but David Fry and Steven Kwan tied for third with only 14.
It’s just the second time in franchise history two players topped 30 homers but no one else had more than 15. In 1934, Earl Averill and Hal Trosky topped 30 while Odell Hale finished third with only 14.
There have been two others times two players hit 30 homers while no one else hit 20:
- 2021 – Ramirez 37, Franmil Reyes 30, Cesar Hernandez 18
- 2002 – Jim Thome 52, Ellis Burks 32, Karim Garcia 16
10 HR from the Leadoff Spot
Steven Kwan hit his 10th home run of the season on Tuesday night. He’s the 16th different player in franchise history with at least 10 homers from the leadoff spot in a season.
The others:
Travis Bazzana Selected First Overall
The Guardians selected Oregon State’s Travis Bazzana with the first overall selection in this year’s MLB draft.
Bazzana was born in Australia and, if he makes it to the majors with Cleveland, will be just the second Australian-born player in team history.
Cam Cairncross, a lefty pitcher, appeared in 15 games for the Tribe during the 2000 season.
There have also been only three players from Oregon State to play for Cleveland:
- Steven Kwan (2022-pres)
- Daniel Robertson (2017)
- Jim Wilson (1985)
That number could rise to four if Matthew Boyd (currently on the IL) appears in a game later this season.
Steven Kwan Batting Leadoff
Steven Kwan will be the leadoff hitter for the American League in this year’s All-Star Game. He’s the sixth different Cleveland hitter to bat leadoff in the game.
The others:
- Roberto Alomar (2000)
- Kenny Lofton (1995-96, 1998-99)
- Johnny Temple (1961)
- Lou Boudreau (1942)
- Joe Vosmik (1935)
Kwan will face Pirates rookie Paul Skenes in the first inning. The last time a rookie started the All-Star Game was in 1995, when Hideo Nomo struck out Kenny Lofton to start the game. Carlos Baerga was the number-two hitter that year and followed up with a hit.
Steven Kwan Enters ASG with .352 BA
Steven Kwan enters the All-Star Break batting .352, just the 10th qualified player in franchise history to enter the break with an average over .350.
Here are the highest averages entering the break in franchise history:
- .378 – Kenny Lofton, 1994
- .375 – Sandy Alomar Jr., 1997
- .373 – Earl Averill, 1938
- .371 – Jeff Heath, 1941
- .358 – Roberto Alomar, 2001
- .357 – Albert Belle, 1994
- .355 – Lou Boudreau, 1948
- .352 – Kwan, 2024
- .352 – Larry Doby, 1950
- .352 – Bill Knickerbocker, 1934
Everyone on the list made the All-Star team except Knickerbocker, who was left off in favor of Hall of Famer Joe Cronin, the only shortstop selected to the game that year. Cronin was batting .283 with a .354 OBP.
Angel Martinez keeps walking
Angel Martinez has tied a franchise record with eight walks through his first six career games.
The full list:
- Martinez, 8
- Steven Kwan, 8
- Daniel Schneemann, 5
- Earl Averill Jr., 5
- Earl Averill, 5
- Bill Hunter, 5
Angel Martinez Thru 4 Career Games
After going 1-2 with three walks against the Giants last night, Angel Martinez has reached base nine times through his first four career games. Only three players in franchise history have reached base more times through four games in franchise history.
The others:
- Steven Kwan, 15
- Nolan Jones, 10
- Riggs Stephenson, 10
- Martinez, 9
- Roy Weatherly, 9
- Earl Averill, 9
Angel Martinez multi-hit games
Angel Martinez collected two hits today against the White Sox. He’s played in just three games and already has two career multi-hit games.
He’s just the 23rd player in team history with multiple multi-hit games within his first three games. Only Riggs Stevenson in 1921 accomplished the feat in all three games.
The most recent to join the list prior to Martinez:
- 2022 – Oscar Gonzalez
- 2022 – Nolan Jones
- 2022 – Steven Kwan
- 2002 – Coco Crisp
- 1987 – Tommy Hinzo
- 1986 – Andy Allanson
- 1977 – Jim Norris
A few other notables on the list: Jim Hegan (1941), Lou Boudreau (1939) and Earl Averill (1929).
Kwan since IL return
In 11 games since returning from the IL, Steven Kwan is batting .535. Not only is it an impressive performance immediately following an IL stint, its the the third highest batting average in a single-season 11-game span for Cleveland since 1994.
Here’s the leaderboard in that span with a minimum of 40 PA and excluding overlapping streaks:
- Albert Belle, 1994 – .579
- Carlos Baerga, 1994 – .545
- Kwan, 2024 – .535
- Ryan Garko, 2007 – .529
- David Justice, 1997 – .529
- Jason Kipnis, 2013 – .528
- Shin-Soo Choo, 2008 – .524
- Roberto Alomar, 2001 – .524
- Justice, 1997 – .514
Justice’s 1997 season appears on here twice. It was two separate streaks with no overlapping games, one in May and another in August.