Pittsburgh Pirates: Baseball Prospectus on Josh Bell

On July 7th, the website Baseball Prospectus released their mid-season top 50 prospect rankings. The Pittsburgh Pirates prospect Josh Bell was ranked #31 on the list.

Here is the rankings and analysis on the players from Craig Goldstein and Baseball Prospectus Staff:

"31. Josh Bell, 1B, Pittsburgh PiratesWhy He’ll Succeed: Bell is a “true” switch-hitter, meaning he’s equally adept at hitting from both sides of the plate. His excellent hand-eye coordination helps him get ahead in counts while also avoiding strikeouts, putting the ball in play exceptionally well for a hitter of his ilk.Why He Might Fail: Because Bell is going to play first base—at least as long as he’s a member of the Pirates organization—he has a ton of pressure on his bat, and if you’re looking for your prototypical 30-homer first baseman, you should probably look elsewhere.link: Mid-Season Top 50 Prospects by Baseball Prospectus"

Things I agree with:

Bell is a true switch hitter. That is without a doubt true. Early in his minor league career many questioned whether or not he would be able to hit consistently from the left side of the plate. In 2013 he had 353 at-bats as a left-handed hitter and batted .273 at Low-A West Virginia. This is when people started to worry, figuring that as he reached higher levels his numbers would decrease as a left-handed hitter. However over the last two seasons he has proved himself capable of doing so. In 2015 at double-A he hit .319 as a left-handed hitter, then he hit close to .370 in his abbreviated stint at Triple-A. This year at Triple-A he was batting .330 in 212 at-bats as a left-handed hitter. The last two years was the first time that he compiled a batting average higher than .300 as a left-handed hitter. Each year his numbers have improved as a left-handed hitter, to the point that he has become just as comfortable from the left side of the plate as he is on his natural right side.

With Josh Bell’s number improving as a left-handed hitter, his overall numbers as a hitter have improved. In his career he has a walk-to-strikeout ratio is 67%. A good walk-to-strikeout ratio is typically around 50%, so Bell does a great job of showing plate discipline. With that his minor league career on-base percentage is .377 which, again shows that he does a great job at limiting strikeouts, drawing walks, and choking up and putting the ball in play. If a player is able to put the ball in play he always will have a chance at getting on base. Bell has always shown a mature approach at the plate and it had made him successful as a prospect.

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Things I Disagree with:

They mention that if you are looking for a 30 home run type player you should look else where. Bell is just 23 years of age. He is young and still physically maturing into his body as a man. With that he already has great size. He is 6’2” and 245 pounds, and if you watched the game last night you could see there is no belly on him. He is built like a college linebacker. Bell has seen his home runs sit around 10 in the minors leagues. This year however, has been different. He had 13 home runs in Triple-A in 83 games, putting him on a pace for over 20. I truly believe that as Bell gets older that he will be a perennial 30 home run guy in this league. Not that he needs to hit home runs to be a great player, but with his huge frame, athleticism, strength and professional approach at the plate he will be the Pittsburgh Pirates future power threat.

Related Story: 3 Prospect Rated top 50

Josh Bell is a great prospect, and it is great to see him in a Pittsburgh Pirates uniform. Last night was unreal, him and Frazier getting on base back to back, showing that the young guys can make an impact against the better players/teams in the league. Josh Bell is going to be a stud in this league, that is why he was worth the 5 million dollar signing bonus he was awarded in 2011, and why Baseball Prospectus believe he is one of the top 31 prospects in all of baseball.

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