Bell has started six straight games at first base, going 6-for-17 with five walks since his recall from Triple-A Indianapolis.

EDGE Analysis

The Pirates moved him into the No. 2 spot Friday for the first time and he responded with a 1-for-3 night (in addition to a walk). Bell has already come out early in three of six starts due to defensive weaknesses, but he's still seeing plenty of plate appearances. The switch hitter has batted left-handed in all but one of his 27 plate appearances. He's seeing an average of 4.30 pitches per plate appearance, comparable to both Joey Votto (4.31) and Paul Goldschmidt (4.29).

Bell will bat second Friday against the Brewers.

EDGE Analysis

Fresh off a three-walk showing in the opener against Milwaukee, Bell will shoot up the lineup after batting fifth or sixth in his first five major league starts. It seems Bell has taken over the starting job at first base from John Jaso despite his questionable defense at the position. He could stick in this spot in the order if he holds his own, as Starling Marte has fared much better this year when batting in the heart of the order.

Bell went 1-for-3 with an RBI in Sunday's loss to the Marlins.

EDGE Analysis

He continues to rake in the majors and Bell now has an absurd .500/.556/1.000 slash line with a home run and five RBI through his first six at-bats. His defense was as shaky as advertised though and while he didn't commit a fielding error in his first big league start, two other Pirates did get charged with throwing errors on plays a slicker first baseman might have been able to salvage. The Pirates would seem to have little to lose by letting Bell's stick carry him through his growing pains with the glove, but his defensive issues could prevent him from seizing a full-time starting role.

Bell will make his first big league start at first base Sunday against the Marlins, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports.

EDGE Analysis

As a mid-game replacement Saturday, he popped out to center field and played two innings of defense at first base. Following a four-game dalliance with Pittsburgh just prior to the All-Star break, Bell hit .211/.312/.275 in 125 Triple-A plate appearances. With David Freese set to serve as the Bucs' primary third baseman while Jung-Ho Kang (shoulder) recovers, Bell's main competition at first base figures to be John Jaso and Sean Rodriguez. A strong performance Sunday could net him addtional playing time in the coming week.

Bell was recalled by the Pirates on Saturday, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Bill Brink reports.

EDGE Analysis

Jung Ho Kang was placed on the DL with a shoulder injury Saturday, so David Freese figures to play primarily at third base in the short term, opening up some at-bats for Bell at first base. The Pirates clearly don't love Bell's defense at first base, as his bat is big league ready and John Jaso has been awful offensively over the last few months. Nonetheless, it would seem they will have to give him a chance there at some point, and Kang's injury opens up an opportunity. In shallower non-keeper leagues, he may not be the best add, as he won't play every day, but in deeper formats he could offer enough with his bat to be useful if he's only starting four or five day per week.

Bell, 23, started in right field for Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday, but he is still seeing the bulk of his playing time at first base.

EDGE Analysis

It is pretty clear at this point that Bell's bat is ready for the big leagues (.308/.395/.491 at Triple-A this season), but the Pirates seem to be dealing with an internal struggle as to how to proceed with him defensively. The team clearly thinks his defense at first base is subpar to the point that it negates the offensive upgrade he would provide over John Jaso and David Freese. At the same time, there is nowhere to play him in the outfield at the big league level, so giving him significant reps there at Triple-A doesn't make a lot of sense in the short term. It stands to reason that Bell will join the Pirates when rosters expand in September, but there is no evidence that he will be up before then.

Pirates GM Neal Huntington said Sunday that Bell will see more action in the outfield after he was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis a day earlier, Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. "It'll be just a refresher. He's very comfortable in the outfield, in fact he ran around the other day here in right field as we were working through when and if Gregory [Polanco's] going to be ready to go," Huntington said. "With what he's done offensively with the number of years, the number of balls he's taken in the outfield, we felt that he could be a very good fallback choice for us if there were an injury or something happened at the major league level and we needed another outfielder."

EDGE Analysis

Bell had played primarily first base this season at Indianapolis prior to his promotion to the big leagues earlier this month, but the Pirates are content with what John Jaso and David Freese have provided them at that position. However, with Bell slashing an impressive .324/.407/.535 at Triple-A and having little left to prove in the minors, the Pirates will try to find ways to increase his utility at the big-league level. Once he gets comfortable playing the outfield again, a promotion could come again in the next couple of weeks, and at the very latest, as a September call-up.

Bell was optioned back to Triple-A Indianapolis on Saturday, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune reports.

EDGE Analysis

Bell has logged only four plate appearances for the Pirates on the year, and he'll now return to Triple-A, where he holds a .324 average with 53 RBI through 83 games. The move comes in response to Gerrit Cole returning from the DL on Saturday.

Bell pinch-hit for the fourth consecutive game Friday, drawing a walk against Stephen Strasburg.

EDGE Analysis

Bell has yet to play in the field, even though Friday's game presented a good opportunity for him to get his feet wet with the Bucs down by four runs in the eighth. The team will need to clear a roster spot for Saturday's starter Gerrit Cole. Bell will either be sent to Triple-A or Gregory Polanco (hamstring) will go on the DL.

Bell figures to potentially come off the bench as a pinch hitter Friday against the Nationals.

EDGE Analysis

The team will likely decide his future Saturday, when it needs to clear a roster spot for the returning Gerrit Cole. Bell will stay on the roster if Gregory Polanco (hamstring) is placed on the disabled list, otherwise he'll head back to Triple-A.