Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Josh Bell is out of the starting lineup for Sundays contest against Milwaukee with Colin Moran shifting over to take his place. Bell has gotten off to a frigid start to 2020, having collected a .545 OPS over his first 23 games with just four extra-base hits and a gaudy 30.2 K%. It appears just to be a day off for Bell, but season-long owners can likely begin to consider other options no matter the pre-season investment. On the DFS market, Bell has become an ...

Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Josh Bell finally had his breakout campaign in 2019, mashing 37 doubles and 37 home runs en route to a .936 OPS. Fast forward to the first 15 games of 2020 and he has just one double and two home runs to his credit with a .579 OPS. Bell is whiffing at an alarming 39.8%, continuing to perform at a lower rate against left-handed pitching. After hitting just .224 against southpaws last season, Bell has opened the year 2-for-16 as a right-handed batter this year. ...

Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Josh Bell is a prototypical slugging designated hitter, and the Pirates could use Jose Osuna at first base if they decide to use Bell as the primary designated hitter in 2020. Another option in the DH role would be outfielder Gregory Polanco, with Guillermo Heredia, who is an excellent defender, in the outfield. It's probably unlikely with the short season, but prospect Oneil Cruz would be a nice power bat at designated hitter. Bell, 27, boosted himself into...

Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Josh Bell avoided salary arbitration on Friday by agreeing to a one-year, $4.8 million deal, according to a source. It was Bell's final year of arbitration eligibility. The 27-year-old was a breakout star in 2019, slashing .277/.367/.569 with 37 home runs, 94 runs and 116 RBI in 527 at-bats. It was a huge improvement over the 12 home runs he hit in 148 games the previous season, and it was his first All-Star selection. We get a feeling it won't be the last for ...

Pirates first baseman Josh Bell is coming off a breakout campaign with 37 homers, 94 runs scored and 116 RBI over 143 games. Hed always shown stellar bat control, but he finally channeled a power profile. His groundball rate went from 49% in 18 to 44% in 19, alongside a near 10-percentage-point boost to his pull rate. His average 411-foot homer distance was tied for 25th out of 281 batters with at least 200 batted-ball events, with an 8.6% Barrels-per-Plate-Appearance rate and 96.1 MPH average ...

The Pittsburgh Pirates will pick up their $11.5 million 2020 option on outfielder Starling Marte, according to sources. It was a no-brainer move after Marte set new career highs in home runs (23), RBI (82), runs (97), slugging percentage (.503) and OPS (.845). He also finished with a 2.9 Wins Above Replacement, which was tied with Josh Bell for third highest on the team. However, with Pittsburgh in a rebuilding phase, the team could look to trade Marte in the offseason or next year before the ...

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Starling Marte (wrist) and first baseman Josh Bell (groin) have both been shut down for the 2019 season. Both players have been injured for multiple weeks, so it's not too surprising that the Pirates shut them down. Pablo Reyes will cover center field and bat fifth on Thursday. Jose Osuna plays first base and bats cleanup versus lefty Jose Quintana. Neither player has much upside to warrant using in DFS contests on Thursday.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Starling Marte (wrist) and first baseman Josh Bell (groin) are out of the starting lineup for Friday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers. Both players continue to deal with nagging injuries that may sideline them for the rest of the regular season. The Pirates aren't playing for much, and will likely wait until both players are 100 percent healthy before letting them play again. Bryan Reynolds will bat second and cover center field on Friday. Colin Moran will ...

Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Josh Bell (groin) is out of the starting lineup for Tuesday's game against the Seattle Mariners. Bell has not played since September 13 due to a groin issue. The Pirates are going to give him as much time as he needs to recover since they aren't playing for anything. Jose Osuna will draw the start at first base and bat cleanup versus righty Marco Gonzales. Osuna appears to be breaking out of his slump, but still doesn't have much upside for DFS contests.

Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Josh Bell (groin) is out of the starting lineup for Saturday's game against the Chicago Cubs. Bell left Friday's game early due to discomfort in his groin. However, the Pirates expect Bell to be fine, so he's considered day-to-day at the moment. Jose Osuna will cover first base and bat cleanup versus righty Kyle Hendricks. Osuna has nine hits in his last 59 at-bats, so he's not a reliable fantasy option at the moment.