CLEVELAND — Steven Kwan is an all-star on the baseball diamond for the Cleveland Guardians, but that’s not the only sport he excels at. 

What You Need To Know

  • Cleveland Guardians Outfielder Steven Kwan hosted a chess tournament called "Check on Your Mate" on Monday

  • The tournament's primary purpose was to promote positive mental health

  • Kwan partnered with several local organizations including "For Art's Sake" to put on the event

Kwan’s love for chess is allowing him to give back to the community and promote positive mental health. 

“This is really the least that we can do," Kwan said. "Give back in any way possible.”

Kwan spends most of his days playing baseball, but on Monday, he traded in his bat and glove for chess pieces. 

Kwan hosted a chess tournament at the Baseball Heritage Museum in Cleveland called “Check on Your mate." He hopes the tournament helps kids open up about mental health.

“If you win or lose a piece, you’re going to be mentally affected by that," said Kwan. "I think chess is kind of the platform to talk about that. We’re all dealing with stuff every single day and just kind of bringing awareness to that, and starting a conversation wherever we can.” 

Kwan was joined by Guardians teammates Tanner Bibee, Slade Cecconi, Austin Hedges and Bo Naylor at the event. They spent the day playing chess against students from Cleveland schools. 

“I’m grateful that my teammates could come out," Kwan said. "They were really competitive, so I had to be on my A-game for those. You get to really understand what the kids are about. Their personalities open up.” 

Several local organizations partnered with the Guardians outfielder to put on the event including For Art’s Sake. Lead Artist Kumar Arora wants to remind people that mental health can be fun too. 

“It’s really an important way for us to shed light on that," Arora said. "People forget about that. It seems like a tough subject but truthfully, if you’re having fun and you’re feeling good that’s always great for your mental state.” 

Raising money for local organizations and presenting scholarships to students are just a few ways the event is giving back to northeast Ohio, something Kwan says means a lot to him. 

“We play a game for a living and we’re supported by our community around us," he said. "It’s just really cool to see all the different walks of life walking around here. So, it was a lot of fun.”