Friday, December 20, 2013

Player Profile: Jay Bell

I have 111 cards of Jay Bell. This one is from 1998 Fleer Tradition.

Playing career: Shortstop Jay Bell played eighteen years in the major leagues for the Indians, Pirates, Royals, Diamondbacks and Mets. In the beginning of his career he was known primarily for his defense. In his first nine seasons he only reached double figures in home runs one time. However, his power increased dramatically in the late 1990s as home run totals surged throughout the league, with seven seasons with double-digit home runs and one huge season in 1999, when he hit .289 with 38 HR and 112 RBI for the Diamondbacks.

My memories: I went to a Pirates-Mets game in 1989 and have a memory of Bell being a big star in that game; at least, I remember him distinctly playing in that game, the first time he really stood out to me. However, looking at the box score I see he went 0-6, so I’m not sure now why I remember him specifically from that game.

Where he is now: Hitting coach for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Google Autocomplete results: He is first when you type Jay Be, ahead of Jay Bernstein, a philosophy professor at The New School. Another prominent Jay Bell is an author.

Coming up next: The next profile will be Juan Bell.

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