Washington Nationals acquire Josh Bell from Pittsburgh Pirates for RHPs Wil Crowe, Eddy Yean

NOVEMBER 2, 2020 - FBB OFFSEASON ROUNDTABLE:

Q: And finally, a bold offseason prediction not covered by the above?

A: The Nationals trade for Josh Bell to play first base and hit in the middle of the lineup.

Going with this because a scout told Pirates beat writer (at The Athletic) Rob Biertempfel he could see it happening to clear up holes at first base and in the middle of their order, and I couldn’t think of anything else to put here. Plus in that article, Jim Bowden said he’s still big on Bell. And he’s good at talent evaluation.

DECEMBER 24, 2020 - TWITTER:

According to the multiple reports above, the Nationals are acquiring Josh Bell, 28, from the Pirates in return for pitchers Wil Crowe and Eddy Yean.

Bell, a 2011 2nd Round pick by Pittsburgh, is coming off a .226/.305/.364 campaign in 2020 which saw the first baseman hit three doubles and eight homers in 57 games and 223 plate appearances, over which he was worth -0.4 fWAR in his fifth big league season in the Bucs’ lineup.

In his last full season in 2019, Bell, a 6’4’’, switch-hitting, right-hand throwing first baseman, put up a .277/.367/.569 line, with career highs in doubles (37) and home runs (37), over 143 games and 613 PAs in a 2.5 fWAR campaign.

The Nationals are acquiring Bell, who has two years of team control left, in return for Crowe, 26, who made his MLB debut with the club in 2020, and Yean, 19, who signed for $100,000 out of the Dominican Republic in July of 2017.

Crowe was ranked No. 3 on the MLB Pipeline list of the Nats’ top prospects this year, while Yean, who pitched in the Gulf Coast and New York/Penn League’s in 2019, was ranked 6th overall in the organization.

GM Mike Rizzo talked last week about a power bat being the organization’s No. 1 priority this offseason, and mentioned finding one who could play first base or a corner outfield spot as the ideal addition. It looks like the first big move of the offseason is to add some middle-of-the-order pop at first base.

What’s next for Rizzo and Co. in the Nationals’ front office? What do you think of adding Bell to the mix in the nation’s capital? And the cost? The club just made the deal official...

“We are thrilled to be adding a player of Josh Bell’s caliber to our team,” Nationals’ President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo said in a press release today.

“He adds a switch-hitting power bat to our lineup. And we know Josh will be an outstanding addition to our clubhouse and our community.”