Guardians Star Returns To Lineup After Brief Injury Absence

Take a sigh of relief, one of the Cleveland Guardians' best hitters has returned to the lineup after a brief injury scare.

Steven Kwan missed Cleveland's first three games back from the All-Star Break, but is back in the starting lineup Monday for the Guardians' series opener against the Baltimore Orioles.

The All-Star will take back his spot hitting leadoff and will be handling left field as he typically does.

Game 1⃣ against the birds.#GuardsBall | #Guardians pic.twitter.com/lU15wu0a0O
— Cleveland Guardians On SI (@GuardiansOnSI) July 21, 2025

Kwan was out of the lineup after receiving an injection in his right wrist last Wednesday. This is an injury the 27-year-old has been dealing with for the last few months, but has continued to play through it.

Kwan did go play in the All-Star Game last Monday, which was an opportunity manager Stephen Vogt said that the team "encouarged" him to do.

Even though Kwan was in Atlanta for the festivities, he said he "wanted to be responsible about it, just playing the game, didn't try to go too crazy with it."

Despite the Guardians taking two of three games against the Athletics over the weekend, with the offense being a bright spot, Cleveland's lineup is undeniably much better with Kwan in the lineup.

The left-handed hitter has a slash line of .285/.345/.396 and an OPS of .741 on the season. However, this injury has clearly been affecting Kwan, as he has a batting average of .227 and an OBP of .289 in his last 30 games.

Hopefully, after the injection and some more rest and injections, Kwan can return to being an elite contact hitter and an on-base machine.

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