Josh Bell Headed to Arizona

The fate has been decided for former Orioles third base prospect, Josh Bell.  Once labeled a great prospect, he was unable to live up to the hype surrounding him.  Orioles fans once saw Bell as the 3B of the future here in Baltimore, while Mark Reynolds was just a warm body bridging the gap to his arrival.

Last week, Luis Exposito was claimed off waivers from Boston and Bell's designation for assignment was the corresponding move to open the roster spot for him.  The trade of Bell came on Saturday, as he was shipped off to the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for a player to be named later.  As far as I can remember, this is the first time that these two franchises did business together via trade.

Bell will be headed to the Triple-A affiliate of Arizona to try and find his stroke.  His power and average have dipped for three years straight now, while his strikeouts have risen.  While we do not know the identity of the player to be named later as of yet, you have to think he would be better than a hitter, (Bell) who did not even crack the .100 mark in average at Triple-A.  Best of luck to Bell with Arizona and I hope he can turn it around and make it to the major leagues.

Orioles Designate Bell For Assignment

A piece of the Orioles future that hasn't panned out, will now have to await word on his new destination.  In a move to clear a roster spot for newly acquired Luis Exposito, the Birds designated 3B Josh Bell for assignment.  Bell has not produced like the Orioles hoped.  As his statistics show, he currently has a slash line of .094/.256/.250.  That comes out to three hits in thirty-two at bats for the 25 year old.  

Exposito is a catcher who has spent his entire career in the Boston Red Sox organization.  He has yet to debut in the majors, but has exhibited some power hitting ability.  While Exposito will not crack the big league roster, it is good to have depth in the minors.  The Orioles start Matt Wieters six out of every seven days, with Paulino handling backup duties.  Taylor Teagarden is also in the organization, currently on the shelf with an injury.  

The coming days will reveal what the Orioles plans are with Bell moving forward.  They can place him on waivers, trade him, or release him.  This just goes to show that in baseball, anything can happen.  A once can't miss prospect is on the verge of being out of a job.  Whichever course of action the Orioles choose to take, I hope it benefits both parties in the future.