Josh Bell To Have Minor Knee Surgery

The Pittsburgh Pirates announced on Wednesday that first baseman Josh Bell will undergo minor knee surgery.

There is never a good time for a Major League Baseball player to have surgery. However, if they are going to undergo surgery February 1st is about as good a time as any. And that is exactly what is happening with Josh Bell.

On Wednesday, the Pittsburgh Pirates announced that their first baseman underwent a minor knee surgery. This surgery was to remove a body form his knee. Due to this, he is expected to be sidelined from baseball activities for two-to-four weeks.

Luckily for Josh Bell, pitchers and catchers do not even report to Bradenton for another 13 days. The first full squad workout is 16 days from now. The Pirates’ first Spring Training game is on February 25th. By this time, Bell should be close to resuming baseball related activities.

Odds are, this surgery will set Josh Bell back by a week or two in his Spring Training preparation. However, it should be no more severe than that. Even if Bell were to miss the full four weeks, he would still return to baseball activities with more than a month left in Spring Training.

I still 100 percent expect Josh Bell to ready for Opening Day. The fact the Pirates first three games will be played in Boston and featured the designated hitter helps as well. If need be, Bell can be the DH in the season’s opening series.

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Even if something goes wrong with Bell’s rehab and he misses extended time, the Pirates are, luckily, a deep team at first base. The Bucs could always platoon David Freese and John Jaso at first base. And while these two would not give the team the production Bell would, they’re combined production would still be that of an above league average hitter.