Despite losing their series finale against the San Diego Padres on May 26, the New York Yankees remain among the top teams in baseball. With a 37-18 record, they hold a two-game lead over the Baltimore Orioles in the American League East. The Yankees are expected to make additions before the July 30 trade deadline to bolster their roster for the upcoming stretch of games. Is it possible that they might acquire Miami Marlins power hitter Josh Bell in their trade haul?
Sports Illustrated’s Dylan Sanders believes it could be a target worth considering for general manager Brian Cashman, particularly given Josh Bell’s resurgence at the plate following a slow start. Bell, a left-handed power hitter, posted a batting line of .228/.311/.355 across 223 plate appearances in 2024. However, in May, his numbers have significantly improved to .296/.370/.457 over 92 plate appearances.
Bell is currently in the second year of a two-year contract worth $33 million, with an annual salary of $16.5 million, according to Spotrac. Due to some inconsistency in his offensive performance over the years, Sanders believes that it wouldn’t require a significant offer for a team to acquire him from the Marlins, making him a “value option” for interested clubs.
Earlier in the season, there were reports linking Bell to the Yankees
Miami’s poor start of 6-24 in 2024 marked them as early-season sellers. Meanwhile, Anthony Rizzo has shown inconsistent production with a .697 OPS in his first 221 plate appearances for New York. Thus, considering another power-hitting option who can also play first base might be beneficial for the team.
Earlier in the season, Bell had already been associated with the Yankees. Tim Kelly from Bleacher Report listed the Yankees as one of Bell’s “ideal landing spots” on April 17, suggesting that Bell could be a suitable addition for the Yankees if Anthony Rizzo and/or Giancarlo Stanton don’t improve their performance.
Stanton has shown improvement in his performance this season, with an OPS of .797, 13 home runs, and 29 RBIs in 187 plate appearances. His performance has been on an upward trend over the past two months. On the other hand, Rizzo’s monthly OPS has declined from March/April (.737) to May (.636 in 90 plate appearances).
Bell being traded at the deadline wouldn’t be a new experience for him
Players probably find being traded at any point to be a strange experience, but the strangeness likely increases significantly when it happens during the middle of the season. However, for Bell, it’s something he has become accustomed to over the past few years.
Since 2022 began, he has been part of four teams and has been traded at the last two deadlines. His journey started when he moved from the Washington Nationals to the Padres at the 2022 deadline. Then, after joining the Cleveland Guardians, they traded him to the Marlins before the 2023 deadline.
His performance varied significantly in each of these scenarios. He had a strong showing with the Nationals, batting .301/.384/.493, but his performance dipped when he moved to San Diego, where he slashed just .192/.316/.271. The trend changed again the next year when he played for the Guardians, posting a .701 OPS, and then saw a significant improvement with Miami, where his OPS rose to .818 towards the end of the season.
Is this variability just a part of baseball’s unpredictability, or did Bell gain insights after his first trade in 2022? It’s difficult to say, but the left-handed hitter may get an opportunity to validate one of these theories this season. Regardless of where he lands, he’ll probably have to settle into yet another new team before the start of the 2025 season.
