Baseball Prospectus | | Eyewitness Scouting Report


	Josh Bell Born: 08/14/1992 (Age: 21)
	Bats: Switch	Throws: Right
	Height: 6' 4"	Weight: 255
	Primary Position: RF

Thicker build; mild room left for growth; should settle into a power body that looks like a major league power hitter; thick thighs and broad shoulders; looks like a RF.

Evaluator	Tucker Blair
Report Date	07/27/2014
Dates Seen	7/24/14 - 7/26/14
Affiliate	Altoona Curve (AA, Pirates)

MLB ETA	Risk Factor	OFP	Video
2016	Moderate	60	No

Tool	Future Grade	Report
Hit	50	Wide stance with slight front foot open; helps to keep him balanced and minimize noise from load; replicates stance from both sides of the plate; plus bat speed; ability to recognize spin is average; will get tied up on the really good stuff but can recognize the fringe to solid-average stuff; needs to cut back on the pre-swing noise from both sides; leaks into the actual swing sometimes and is complete unnecessary. LHH: swing is more natural; keeps balance better; feet are mostly fine; will occasionally fly open with his shoulder which causes him to put a slight loop in swing and slow down bat; gets under and is late on pitches when this occurs; hands can become noisy and shoulder is too noisy; swing has slight more lift and shows better ability to barrel pitches than as RHH. RHH: swing has more noise; balance is an issue; jumps out of his shoes at times; hands move around too much; drops his shoulder more than as LHH; hands will drift and he sometimes will over-extend; same tools as from other side but swing is generally less refined and has further to go before seeing true in-game success.
Power	60	Tick above plus raw power; hands explode through zone; has brute strength; plus bat speed and slight lift in swing make for a swing conducive to power; ball screams off his bat when barreled; he's going to hit the ball hard when he makes contact; ball carries off his bat well; power as LHH is more evident; shows power from both sides but as LHH has a cleaner natural swing and likely translates to more in-game success.
Baserunning/Speed	45	4.43 from home to first; decent second gear; takes a while to start his body into full motion; first gear is poor; not a high amount of initial agility; looks faster in OF than on the base path; might actually be an average runner right now; will settle in at fringe-average with slight growth and maturity as he gets older.
Glove	40	Adventurous; instincts are not terrific; reads are average; first step is delayed at times; feet can become sloppy or staggered; has trouble twisting body and moving laterally after balls behind him; shows some inconsistencies with footwork moving backwards; route running is a large aspect of this issue; routes are not clean and takes incorrect angles; footwork is clearly what is being worked on; practiced footwork in pre-game and was able to replicate and refine the issues there; need to see in-game now.
Arm	60	Cannon arm; shows ability to throw on a line from long distance in OF; made a line throw from the pole to 2B in excellent time; ball hovered off ground; good arm strength and accurate throws; easily enough arm for RF.

Bell has two plus tools that will provide positional value due to being a Right Fielder. The swing is currently inconsistent but he shows ability to hit the ball to all fields and the barrel-to-ball ability is solid. The skills are still lagging in-game, but the raw tools are all there and he is showing some of them. The ball jumps off his bat when he makes contact, but he still needs to learn and grow as a hitter when it comes to situational hitting and his general approach at the plate. He has a decent eye, but there were a few AB where he did not have the most logical approach for the situation at hand.

Overall, I like Bell and think there is enough talent to be a very talented Right Fielder. However, the swing still needs some refinement and he looks like a player that will need at least another year at the AA level.