It's late June and Guardians OF Steven Kwan is flirting with the mystical .400

No player has hit .400 or better in a full Major League Baseball season since Ted Williams batted .406 in 1941. It was a time before MLB was integrated, before the westward expansion of the league and before night games became the norm.

While hitting .400 was a remarkable feat in Williams' era, today's hitters face a significantly more challenging environment. Pitchers now throw harder with pitches that exhibit more movement, leaving batters with less time to react. The average MLB batting average has steadily declined from .262 in 1941 to .248 in 2023 and currently sits at .241 this season. The drop began in earnest in the 2010s, with averages plummeting into the .240s by 2018.

The modern game is dominated by a higher number of elite pitchers. Compared to the past, when hitters like Babe Ruth faced starting pitchers four times through a game – Ruth saw a starting pitcher 125 times in 1924 – today's hitters contend with a revolving door of fresh, highly skilled arms. The average length of a starting pitcher's outing has decreased from 5.75 innings in 2008 to 5.18 innings last season.

This all makes the performance of Cleveland Guardians OF Steven Kwan stand out. Entering play on Thursday, Kwan was hitting .397 through 184 at-bats, bolstered by a scorching .489 average in June. While modern baseball analytics have shifted the focus from batting average to stats like OPS, Kwan's pursuit of the magical .400 mark is captivating in a league where the average is so suppressed.

Currently, Bobby Witt Jr. ranks second in MLB with a .323 batting average. Though Kwan has not yet qualified for the batting title due to an early-season injury, his .397 average is a stunning .74 points higher than Witt's. For the advanced stat aficionados, Kwan boasts a .554 slugging percentage and a 1.010 OPS, both of which would rank near the top of the league if he were qualified.

In recent memory, Ichiro Suzuki (2004), Nomar Garciaparra (2000) and Todd Helton (2000) made it up to .372 over a full season, while Barry Bonds sat at .370 in 2002. Outside of those four stars, nobody has topped .370 since 2004. 

Kwan's season has been nothing short of remarkable. His longest hit-less streak has lasted just seven plate appearances and he is the first player in 23 years to collect 70 hits in his first 43 games – a feat only matched by his idol, Ichiro, in the 21st century.

Guardians manager Stephen Vogt, for one, thinks that Kwan has the skill set to reach that magic .400 mark if everything breaks right.

"I mean, the way our game is played now, it’s extremely difficult to hit .400. With all the information that we have, where guys are positioning, just the advancements in the game," explained Vogt, "it takes somebody who has the ability to make contact consistently and hit the ball all over the field. But could it be done again? Yeah, I think it could, but it’s extremely difficult. But, I would definitely say Kwanie has the skillset to do it."