Oct 19, 2022; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres designated hitter Josh Bell (24) hits an RBI-single in the fifth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies during game two of the NLCS for the 2022 MLB Playoffs at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
By Zack Meisel
Dec 13, 2022
51
Save Article
CLEVELAND — It happens every winter: A player joins a new team and delivers a string of clichés about how excited they are about their new home.
Josh Bell, however, has done his homework. No clichés, only specifics.
During his introductory news conference on Monday, Bell mentioned how he followed the Guardians’ playoff run, how he marveled at their scrappy style of offense, how they boasted the league’s lowest strikeout rate at the plate and how they racked up a bevy of comeback wins. He expressed his eagerness to bat behind a top-third of the order comprised of base-stealers and, as he noted, that’s before Major League Baseball installs larger bases and limits pickoff attempts.
Here’s more on what Bell had to offer, plus thoughts on the Guardians missing out on top catching trade target Sean Murphy.
Like many of his new teammates, Bell enjoyed his first taste of the postseason in October, an opportunity afforded to him when the Nationals dealt him to the Padres at the trade deadline.
“Every expectation I had was blown out of the water,” Bell said. “We all have that same taste in our mouth of what the postseason can bring and how close we were (to the World Series).”
Cleveland’s chances for a deep playoff run will increase if Bell supplies steady hits in the middle of manager Terry Francona’s lineup. So, how about a self-evaluation from the 30-year-old slugger?
“When I’m right, I hit for average and power,” he said. “When I’m wrong, I don’t hit for either.”
At least he’s honest. To his credit, even when he’s “wrong,” he does draw a ton of walks. His on-base percentage has a pretty high floor. He had a Jekyll-and-Hyde 2022 season, as he felt he “could do no wrong” with Washington, and then was “a step behind in some of the approaches and some of the attack plans” with San Diego.
The numbers confirm as much.
With the Nationals: .301/.384/.493 slash line
With the Padres: .192/.316/.271 slash line
He still produced enough overall to receive his first Silver Slugger Award as the most prolific designated hitter in the National League.
Bell isn’t the prototypical power hitter, the all-or-nothing threat fixated on launching the ball toward the outfield seats. He topped out at 37 homers in 2019, but he has a vastly different hitting profile than, say, the guy he’s replacing, Franmil Reyes. Bell reduced his strikeout rate to 15.8 percent last season. That’s a better rate, for instance, than Amed Rosario’s 16.6 percent.
“If I can leave the yard, then so be it,” Bell said. “But if we’re winning a ton of games and I’m leading the league in doubles, I think I’ll be just as happy.”
He’s also intrigued by what he might be able to achieve with the league imposing limits on defensive shifting. Bell said he expects to be rewarded more for making hard contact when he pulls the ball between first and second base while batting left-handed. He said he shied away from such an approach in the past because of how opposing teams aligned their infield against him.
“I feel like a lot of lefties have been waiting for this moment for a long time,” Bell said.
And that played a part in why his new contract — a two-year, $33 million deal — includes an opt-out after the 2023 season. If he excels, he can test free agency again and attempt to land a more lucrative salary than the $16.5 million the Guardians would pay him in 2024.
His agent, Scott Boras, compared the setup to the contract pitcher Carlos Rodón signed with the Giants last offseason. San Francisco handed the lefty a two-year deal (outbidding Cleveland in the process) worth $44 million that included an opt-out clause. Rodón opted out in November and now stands to earn a long-term pact worth nine figures.
“It’s an incentive where, if I can do what I think I can do,” Bell said, “regardless of numbers or anything like that, I’m going to have another crack at getting a raise next year.”
Pairing Bell with José Ramírez in the middle of the lineup could equip Francona with consecutive, patient switch-hitters who are averse to striking out and wield plenty of power.
“It’s tough to not get that itch … to play with José Ramírez,” Bell said. “Prodigious, best switch hitter in the league for a long time there. So, hopefully we can learn from each other, I can hit behind him, and what did he have, like, 120 RBIs last year?”
Again, the man did his homework. One-hundred twenty-six, to be precise.
“Hopefully he saved some for me,” Bell said. “But if we’re both over 100, I think we’ll be in a good place.”
Bell said his wife, a native of Poland, Ohio, outside of Youngstown, has been “grinning from ear to ear” since he signed with the Guardians.
How many times did you read over Oakland’s return for Murphy and assume you accidentally skipped over the name of a top 100 prospect or two? It’s OK. You’re not alone.
The return certainly seems light, like more of a bundle than a haul. The Athletic’s Keith Law declared the Brewers made out the best of the three teams involved in the trade, and suggested Oakland’s side seemed underwhelming.
So, how could the Guardians’ front office, anchored by team president Chris Antonetti and general manager Mike Chernoff, who have publicly voiced the team’s desire to land catching help to ease Bo Naylor’s transition to the majors, not top the offer made by the Braves (with an assist from the Brewers)?
Be careful comparing the return from Atlanta/Milwaukee with the reported return Oakland wanted from St. Louis and what that might have meant for a package from Cleveland. Teams value players — especially prospects — differently, so as you try to compare Lars Nootbaar to Steven Kwan or Esteury Ruiz to Will Brennan or George Valera or anyone else, just know one team might completely overvalue or undervalue a player, relative to how that player’s own team values him.
Cleveland once pursued Todd Frazier to play third base, but the Reds asked for Cody Allen or Danny Salazar. Cleveland refused, and the Reds ended up with (what appeared to be at the time, and what ultimately turned out to be) a far worse return in a three-way deal with the White Sox and Dodgers.
Sean Murphy is headed to Atlanta. What will the Guardians do to fill the void at catcher? (Darren Yamashita / USA Today)
Industry sources indicated the A’s have sought one of the Guardians’ top pitching prospects since the teams discussed a Murphy trade over the summer. Cleveland had no desire to move Daniel Espino or Gavin Williams, and even demonstrated reluctance to part with certain young position players.
Still, the Guardians boast one of the league’s deepest farm systems. They should have had the ammunition to top any offer for Murphy if they desperately wanted to pair him with Naylor. They preferred to deal from their wealth of middle-infield prospects, which has been the case for a year now as they continue to search for what they deem is the right deal. If they wait too long, the prospects who don’t fit onto their major-league roster might waste away in Triple-A purgatory. Nolan Jones went from being the organization’s top-ranked prospect on public lists to being traded for a low-level prospect in a matter of a couple of years.
As for their catching situation, they’ve backed themselves into a corner. Keep an eye on free agent Mike Zunino, who has recovered from thoracic outlet syndrome surgery. The Blue Jays could still move one of their three catchers. Austin Hedges is still out there somewhere, hairy chest and all. The Guardians were never going to hand Christian Vázquez a three-year deal, as the Twins did.
One other thing to ponder: Which team led the majors in offensive production from its catchers in 2022? The same team that just added Murphy. Braves catchers posted a 128 wRC+ and a .273/.335/.485 slash line last season. Guardians catchers posted a 55 wRC+ (29th in the league) and a .178/.265/.265 slash line.