Why the Josh Bell Signing Could Be the Catalyst Twins' Young Core Needed

[Matthew Trueblood]

Image courtesy of © Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Often, ballplayers erect a bulletproof facade when talking to fans or the press. Baseball is a viciously difficult game, and admitting even a brief period of real self-doubt feels a bit like pointing to the weak point in your own armor before marching into battle. To be a successful professional athlete, you have to be an extraordinary competitor. To be a successful baseball player, you have to add some swagger to that fire. Otherwise, the inevitable failure the game heaps upon every player will block your path to victory.

That made it striking when, in a brief introductory press conference via Zoom last week, Josh Bell let a group of reporters he was meeting for the first time glimpse the way he'd grappled with doubt about his ability and his future, just a few months ago.

"I didn't really know what to expect going into the offseason," Bell admitted. "Had a g good stretch towards the end of the season that I was pretty pleased with, so, just talking with my agent, he said that it was a good chance that I was gonna get signed, just had to wait for some bigger names to get off the board."

To an outsider looking at his full-season body of work, it might have been surprising that he'd ever worried about whether he would be signed. However, Bell had struggled throughout the first half, and for the first time in four years, he wasn't traded at the deadline in July. Instead, he was left to ride things out with the lowly Nationals. A savvy veteran, Bell knew what it meant when no contending team would surrender anything of value to add him to their mix for the stretch run. At age 33, he was in real danger of seeing his playing career draw to a close.

However, as he noted, Bell finished the season strongly. He batted .257/.331/.486 in August and September. There were two related keys to his midseason turnaround: ironing out some bad habits he brought to camp, and improving his bat speed and lift with a tweak to his training and practice.

"[Nationals teammate] Amed Rosario had an unbelievable camp and started off the season really strong, and I just basically ordered the same bat program that he had," Bell said. "I think he went to Driveline or something like that. He explained the drills that he was doing, and I tried virtually all of them, and I stuck with the sinker machine with the heavy bat because that's when I started seeing results, on the field. It’s just one of those things where you play with veterans and then we start talking and, you know, it definitely helped out, and helped me extend my career."

There, Bell is referring to hitting against a machine calibrated to fire sinkers at the batter, as opposed to the straighter launches from a typical hitting machine or the lollipops lobbed in by your average coach. He used a weighted bat for those sessions, which he found both a boon to his bat speed when swinging with his regular bat and a good way to practice getting slightly beneath the ball and generating more hard contact in the air. He also knows how to avoid the same sluggish start he had in 2025.

"I’m kind of kicking myself in the foot here. I tried golfing for the first time, last offseason," said Bell, who has been a baseball-first athlete his whole life. He's learned his lesson. "So I just won't do that anymore, I think it kind of made me lose my swing over the course of the offseason. I’ve just been hitting from both sides. I told myself I'll hang up the clubs until I hang up my jersey. Hopefully that helps."

The Twins took note of Bell's late-season resurgence, and they were the first team to call this winter. However, it was really new manager Derek Shelton—who skippered the last days of Bell's tenure with the Pirates—who started the conversation.

"My agency said that he came up to one of our guys and was like, ‘Hey, we want Josh,' day one of the Winter Meetings," Bell said. "So I got a call from them and they said, ‘Are you interested?’ I said, ‘For sure.’

Shelton and Bell had a good rapport during their brief stint with Pittsburgh, though it was constrained by the strangeness of the COVID season. Shelton came away with conviction about Bell's leadership qualities, though, and Bell hopes to bring that skillset to bear with Minnesota.

"Yeah, for sure. I mean, I did that last year," he said. "I got to watch [CJ Abrams] and James Wood up close and tried to help when I could there. I'm definitely excited to continue that role and have that leadership in the clubhouse. It's not always easy. First, you gotta get to know people, you gotta understand where people are willing to listen or if people are kind of set in their ways. But I’ll do what I can, and hopefully help people find different routines to help them progress here in the big leagues."

Speaking of players who are sometimes set in their ways, the one current Twin whom Bell noted having a relationship with is Royce Lewis, whom he met through their agency and who now lives near him.

"We’re actually in the same area here in Frisco, Texas, so I think we're gonna start getting together next week and taking grounders together," Bell said. "I'll watch him throw from across the diamond and get some reads there. But yeah, I met him, shoot, maybe the first or second year after he got grafted. I know he’s had a little bit of ups and downs with his career with injuries and whatnot, but hopefully I can help him out with that just a little bit, and we'll see what he can do on the field if he can get up to 140 games."

To create some early on-field chemistry between the team's presumptive starters at the corner infield spots would be great, but if Bell can help Lewis embrace the mentality Bell takes—the focus on improvement, the openness to changes, and so on—it could be even more beneficial. Bell should also be a positive influence on players with more superficially similar skills to his, like Matt Wallner and Trevor Larnach. 

The Twins will contend for a playoff spot in 2026 only if they're able to get more out of Wallner, Larnach, Lewis and others than they've gotten in either of the last two seasons. Bell's own hitting will matter a great deal, but his greatest impact on the team could come in the form of helping those players make sound adjustments or better respond to the input of the coaching staff. He's an unusual player, not only in how intelligent and single-minded he is, but in how free of bravado or bluster he's willing to be. If the Twins' young core learns from his example, signing Bell could be remembered as a catalytic move by the front office and its new partner in the dugout.

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[Chembry]

31 minutes ago, Bigfork Twins Guy said:

I thought Buxton provided leadership in the clubhouse.  That said, I guess you can have multiple leaders and maybe Bell shines more verbally as Buck is more like Mauer was; leading by example.

I'd love it if Bell could get some of the younger hitters to improve.  I just hope with the new manager, new hitting coach, and Bell all barking into their ears, that our young hitters don't digress, although there's not much further to digress.

Below is a picture of Royce and Buxton from August 2025.  Royce either struck out or popped out in a big spot and showed frustration.  Buxton had his arm around Royce and were talking the entire time in between innings.  I don't think you need more evidence showing Buxton is more than just a lead by example guy.  At the same time, you can have more than one "leader" in the clubhouse.  Hopefully, Bell will add an additional voice of support, an additional sounding board, or whatever is needed for the younger hitters to take that next step.

[bean5302]

I get the impression Josh Bell is just a guy. He's a league average hitter at the tail end of his career. I don't know as he brings anything more than a guy like Trevor Larnach would bring in terms of leadership. Having a replacement level veteran who is in the twighlight of their career as a revolving door "leader" doesn't seem like a valuable thing to me. 

[Riverbrian]

It's a 26 man roster. No leaders out of the other 25? 

In order to lead you need followers... Are the other 25 capable of following. 

They will talk to who they talk to. They will believe what they want to believe just like Tom Petty says on the album Damn the Torpedoes. 26 players and each one with a different personality. Not to mention a team full of coaches, analysts and scouts that players should be listening to along with the simple motivation of keeping a job in the profession.   

A leader without followers is just a guy taking a walk.  

I'm sorry... I'm not much for the intangible conversation. The Pirates were 19-41 in 2020. Would they have been 10-50 without his leadership that impressed Shelton? 

Bell has played on some bad teams... So where did he lead these bad teams to?   

[AceWrigley]

Good people are good leaders just by being themselves around people. If that is Josh Bell, he will be an asset in the clubhouse. I'm hoping the 2026 Twins get off to a decent start and stay competitive.

[GNess]

Nelson Cruz, Carlos Correa were vets who led but they had much better resumes than Josh Bell. With those resumes comes some credibility, Doesn't mean Bell can't be an important voice, but it seems a lot to ask of a guy who may struggle to hit .250.

[DJL44]

This is not a particularly young team at the moment. It has the potential to go young, but Josh Bell will be gone if they turn the roster over.

[nicksaviking]

It does seem odd that for about a decade now, so many Twins leaders need to come from other organizations......

[IndianaTwin]

2 hours ago, Chembry said:

Below is a picture of Royce and Buxton from August 2025.  Royce either struck out or popped out in a big spot and showed frustration.  Buxton had his arm around Royce and were talking the entire time in between innings.  I don't think you need more evidence showing Buxton is more than just a lead by example guy.  At the same time, you can have more than one "leader" in the clubhouse.  Hopefully, Bell will add an additional voice of support, an additional sounding board, or whatever is needed for the younger hitters to take that next step.

I'll go a step further and say you WILL have more than one "leader" in the clubhouse. With 26 guys it's inevitable that there are going to be different leadership styles and that people will respond differently to different leadership styles, etc. There's positional differences as well -- you hear regularly of guys who are leaders on a pitching staff, etc.

Your picture captures the type of leadership I've perceived in Buxton as well. And while it's impossible to judge from the outside, my sense is that Lewis responds better to how Buxton seems to lead than to how Correa seemed to lead. That's not a knock on Correa, just an example -- others may benefit from more rah-rah than Buxton seems to provide. We're all different.

Leadership isn't enough to get and maintain a spot on the roster, but if that's an aspect Bell brings to the roster, cool. I'm struck that leadership was perceived as something Santana brought to the roster a couple years ago. Bell's 110 OPS+ last year was better than the 101 Santana had in the year prior to joining the team.

I think Bell's a solid add, but the key is still going to be the rest of the roster. As I've said elsewhere, for the Twins to be good offensively, Bell needs to be batting sixth or seventh, shoved down the lineup by a thriving Lewis/Wallner/Keaschall, etc. If he's batting fourth, they will struggle. 

[jorgenswest]

I don’t think there is any question he is a leader and will be valuable in the clubhouse.

Jose Bell been nominated twice by two different teams for the Roberto Clemente award. The award honors a player who best represents baseball through extraordinary character, community involvement, and philanthropy. Pablo Lopez has been a recent Twins nominee and was also nominated by the Marlins.

[Cris E]

It's a personality thing, not a job title. If Bell is a good guy that likes to get to know his teammates and offer advice then that's who he is. Some guys talk golf and others go home at every opportunity and others are toxic a-holes that don't accept laziness or complacency without a challenge, and all have their places in a modern locker room. You don't need to be a great player to tell stories of how former teammates like Trout or Verlander prepared for games, or to push back on ideas like "change is only for the off-season."  

Now I don't think it makes a huge difference in most clubhouses because most players are fairly mature and know what works for them by the time they reach MLB. But when you've got a ton of callow youth in your lineup, or even a couple specific ones you want to ensure grow up right, then it may be worth investing in. Bell should be evaluated for his on-field work, not his camp counselor value.

[TheLeviathan]

I'm pretty sure Randball Stu could easily use this headline for a more accurate take.

[Gamblerssoftball]

Two things stand out in this article. Bell made some adjustments last year and he had a nice last two months. He's a veteran and I expect it to be continued this year. That alone gives me confidence in his signing. But even bigger, in my opinion, is that he's a good teammate with good leadership qualities. Some here poo poo this. Not me. If he's a mentor to any of the younger guys, it's a big deal. Respect for being a 10+ year veteran means a lot to guys trying to figure out the rigors of life on the road and demands at home playing major league baseball every day. Nothing is guaranteed, of course, but there's some reason for optimism in this area.

[jkcarew]

Mmmm…Bell’s OPS+ last year was down from the previous year and below him career average. He’s definitely not ‘great’, never has been. I think other than encouraging others to continue to work and make adjustments, that’s about all he can offer. Maybe easy to relate to in that he’s been mediocre for long stretches. Worth something, I guess. Still, I’d rather have a Nelson Cruz, a proven producer, who’s going to be setting an example (especially for righties) with 90% of his plate appearances…where you can just learn from watching him PA to PA and game to game. We kinda/sorta had that with Correa…now nobody fits that role…even a little bit.

[Linus]

I’m always wary when they start pulling out the “intangibles” card. He has to hit, plain and simple. If he doesn’t there isn’t enough rah-rah to make a difference. 

[Doctor Wu]

Very good article, giving us some more insight into Josh Bell and how he approaches the game. He strikes me as one of those not-so-flashy veterans that can make a subtle but positive influence on the field and in the clubhouse. I'm happy that we signed him. 

[old nurse]

11 hours ago, Linus said:

I’m always wary when they start pulling out the “intangibles” card. He has to hit, plain and simple. If he doesn’t there isn’t enough rah-rah to make a difference. 

If having Bell’s intangibles cures the woes of the players who have underperformed from their peak it will not be a problem of what he does  hitting as he would be on a bench.   

[Riverbrian]

56 minutes ago, old nurse said:

If having Bell’s intangibles cures the woes of the players who have underperformed from their peak it will not be a problem of what he does  hitting as he would be on a bench.   

The tortoise motivating the hare, 

[rv78]

If Josh Bell is the answer to the woes of a player like Royce Lewis, then this organization has failed miserably in the coaching department. I thought the coaches were the experts, thus the reason for hiring them. If the players have the answers then let's just fire the coaches and let the players run the show. The ONLY way any other player will listen to Josh Bell is if Josh Bell performs like a veteran all-star. That has happened since the year of the juiced ball in 2019. I also highly doubt that he will see much playing time at 1st base. How's Mr Lewis going to feel when Mr Bell can't field a routine grounder or dig out a low throw from him? Bell = DH. 

[twinfan]

I think Lewis is ok. As far as Bell being a leader, we'll see. But maybe he should get off the field and become a coach. That's where the leadership may need to come from. Yes, the players need players they can talk to but to teach someone may need to come from the coaching staff. And yes, leaders need followers as the Cruz-Sano relationship proved. Cruz tried to teach but Sano couldn't follow (or maybe didn't have the skills to follow).

[JD-TWINS]

21 hours ago, bean5302 said:

I get the impression Josh Bell is just a guy. He's a league average hitter at the tail end of his career. I don't know as he brings anything more than a guy like Trevor Larnach would bring in terms of leadership. Having a replacement level veteran who is in the twighlight of their career as a revolving door "leader" doesn't seem like a valuable thing to me. 

Just another drag of a take ……. if you “don’t know” then why is there a presumption that he’ll be of no benefit? ……… many here state that guys that “aren’t stars” make the best coaches…… he’s open and saying the right things - can’t see that it will hurt for him to try.

[JD-TWINS]

22 minutes ago, rv78 said:

If Josh Bell is the answer to the woes of a player like Royce Lewis, then this organization has failed miserably in the coaching department. I thought the coaches were the experts, thus the reason for hiring them. If the players have the answers then let's just fire the coaches and let the players run the show. The ONLY way any other player will listen to Josh Bell is if Josh Bell performs like a veteran all-star. That has happened since the year of the juiced ball in 2019. I also highly doubt that he will see much playing time at 1st base. How's Mr Lewis going to feel when Mr Bell can't field a routine grounder or dig out a low throw from him? Bell = DH. 

If one teacher can turn a kid around or be of substantial help in high school - does the whole school system suck? Nobody is saying he’s the Savior - he’s just a veteran that’s willing to be involved with teammates that are open to talking & listening.

[bean5302]

1 minute ago, JD-TWINS said:

Just another drag of a take ……. if you “don’t know” then why is there a presumption that he’ll be of no benefit? ……… many here state that guys that “aren’t stars” make the best coaches…… he’s open and saying the right things - can’t see that it will hurt for him to try.

So it's okay for you to presume there will be a benefit? 

I don't buy the Twins need a Kyle Farmer, Carlos Santana, Josh Bell, Joey Gallo type of a guy on the roster every year to help motivate the mostly veteran players on the 26 man roster.

[JD-TWINS]

Just now, bean5302 said:

So it's okay for you to presume there will be a benefit? 

I don't buy the Twins need a Kyle Farmer, Carlos Santana, Josh Bell, Joey Gallo type of a guy on the roster every year to help motivate the mostly veteran players on the 26 man roster.

Those others have nothing to do with an upbeat write up about how Josh Bell dug himself out of a hole & how he’s willing to pass on info to guys 7-10 years younger - that’s it.

I think it’s OK to presume it won’t hurt, and that not every opinion writers share, whether it’s their’s or what they’ve heard, should be met with absolute pessimism.

You do you.

[Woof Bronzer]

9 minutes ago, JD-TWINS said:

Just another drag of a take ……. if you “don’t know” then why is there a presumption that he’ll be of no benefit? ……… many here state that guys that “aren’t stars” make the best coaches…… he’s open and saying the right things - can’t see that it will hurt for him to try.

Why do you presume there will be a benefit?

[JD-TWINS]

7 minutes ago, Woof Bronzer said:

Why do you presume there will be a benefit?

I don’t! …… I didn’t say that.

My rub is the presumption that it won’t and how this is a ridiculous take by the writer (another washed up veteran with nothing to contribute)…….. Bell states how he noticed Rosario’s success and how he shifted his regimen & it worked …….. he’s not a wizard but sharing this type of stuff (not the details always but the openness to tweak), as a veteran that’s had some success and a bunch of lean times, I think it may have a positive effect. It may not but at least Bell has tried.

Similar stuff to what Buxton - Hunter or Morneau would convey, IMO.

[JD-TWINS]

22 hours ago, Riverbrian said:

It's a 26 man roster. No leaders out of the other 25? 

In order to lead you need followers... Are the other 25 capable of following. 

They will talk to who they talk to. They will believe what they want to believe just like Tom Petty says on the album Damn the Torpedoes. 26 players and each one with a different personality. Not to mention a team full of coaches, analysts and scouts that players should be listening to along with the simple motivation of keeping a job in the profession.   

A leader without followers is just a guy taking a walk.  

I'm sorry... I'm not much for the intangible conversation. The Pirates were 19-41 in 2020. Would they have been 10-50 without his leadership that impressed Shelton? 

Bell has played on some bad teams... So where did he lead these bad teams to?   

I don’t get the slant……..the article doesn’t say he’s Clark Kent. Would you rather that the “take” on the guy was that he kept to himself and was a prick to his teammates, particularly the young guys? Nowhere was it said that he’s the only potential leader on the Club nor that he aspires to get a C on his chest.  Harmon Killebrew played on a bunch of not very good teams - was he a fraud with his leadership? Team record has nothing to do with an individual’s character and attitude. You’re correct, he’s not holding mandatory pep talks for 25 guys - that’s why he said that he needs to figure out who wants to talk and who wants to listen. He’s not Billy Graham either.

[Riverbrian]

3 minutes ago, JD-TWINS said:

I don’t get the slant……..the article doesn’t say he’s Clark Kent. Would you rather that the “take” on the guy was that he kept to himself and was a prick to his teammates, particularly the young guys? Nowhere was it said that he’s the only potential leader on the Club nor that he aspires to get a C on his chest.  Harmon Killebrew played on a bunch of not very good teams - was he a fraud with his leadership? Team record has nothing to do with an individual’s character and attitude. You’re correct, he’s not holding mandatory pep talks for 25 guys - that’s why he said that he needs to figure out who wants to talk and who wants to listen. He’s not Billy Graham either.

My response was probably a reaction to the title of the article. Specifically the use of the word "Catalyst". 

I wasn't implying that he can't lead. 

It's my little personal war against this type of justification for the lower dollar one year vet. 

 

 

[Woof Bronzer]

39 minutes ago, JD-TWINS said:

I don’t! …… I didn’t say that.

My rub is the presumption that it won’t and how this is a ridiculous take by the writer (another washed up veteran with nothing to contribute)……..

I don't understand your point.  If it's not ok to make presumptions on a sports blog you are came to the wrong place.  

The Twins need better players, not "clubhouse guys".  They had a legendary "leader" last year in Correa and the team was so bad they dumped him for nothing.  

[JD-TWINS]

2 hours ago, Woof Bronzer said:

I don't understand your point.  If it's not ok to make presumptions on a sports blog you are came to the wrong place.  

The Twins need better players, not "clubhouse guys".  They had a legendary "leader" last year in Correa and the team was so bad they dumped him for nothing.  

They dumped him because he supplied about $12M worth of value on the field and they were going to pay him $33M. “Legendary”…… not sure who thinks that?

Obviously, the Twins (and every other organization) need better players…….definitely the Twins! I wasn’t thrilled with the Josh Bell signing. The fact that he had an interesting epiphany at the plate over last 60 days of ‘25 because he switched up his practice regimen - that seems like a positive. Sharing that success, not the detail, but the fact you can always tweak and get better ….. seems like a good message to younger guys. He can share this and a half dozen other things …… they can listen or not.

You can presume whatever you like - my opinion - take - presumption, is that it’s sickening (to me) that 85% of the responses here are doom & gloom or some negative, no matter what the subject.