Major League Baseball

Pirates pick Bell sold on Pittsburgh's future

Published Aug. 20, 2011 3:34 a.m. ET

foxsports

Josh Bell was so convinced he wanted to play college baseball at Texas he sent the major league scouting bureau a note asking teams not to select him in the MLB Draft.

The powerfully built outfielder even changed his phone number hoping clubs would get the message.

Didn't matter, the Pittsburgh Pirates came calling anyway, taking Bell with the 61st pick. General manager Neal Huntington and director of scouting Greg Smith spent weeks trying to get Bell to change his mind, sending him power point presentations on the team's player development program and pointing to homegrown success stories like second baseman Neil Walker and All-Star centerfielder Andrew McCutchen.

Eventually, Bell wore down. The eye-popping $5 million signing bonus he received didn't hurt either.

''I think the Pirates went out and took a leap of faith for me and I'm really happy that they did,'' Bell said Friday after being introduced at PNC Park, four days after agreeing to terms.

Even if the leap was a pricey one for the normally budget-conscious Pirates. Pittsburgh spent $13 million securing Bell and top overall pick Gerrit Cole. Huntington says the team wasn't trying to send a message by loosening the purse strings, but if that's the way a fan base eager for a winner takes it, all the better.

''Our focus was securing the best talent we can, if there's a message that goes along with that, that's great,'' Huntington said. ''But our focus is doing everything in our power every single day to try and build the right foundation upon which championship clubs can be built.''

Pittsburgh hopes the 6-foot-2 Bell is part of the equation, even if he's several years away from making his major league debut. Bell hit .548 this spring at Jesuit College Prep in Dallas with 13 home runs and 54 RBIs, gaudy numbers for a player that rarely saw a good pitch to hit. He was walked 48 times.

A little discipline, however, doesn't hurt, though Pittsburgh didn't eschewed Bell's directive to leave him alone because of his keen batting eye. For a ballclub lacking pop at the major league level - the Pirates have just 82 homers this year, 24th in the majors - Bell provides hope of a big bat in the lineup down the road.

''He's big strong, tremendous athlete with power,'' Huntington said. ''He brings a lot to the table.''

It's why the Pirates didn't hesitate with the first pick of the second round. If they swung and missed, they'd just move on. They didn't have to because they negotiated with Bell's mother Myrtle and adviser Scott Boras based Bell's potential, not the spot in the draft when his name was called.

''He sat sixth on our draft board and we paid accordingly,'' Huntington said.

Still, Bell waited until just before the signing deadline before making a decision. He turned 19 on Sunday and talked it over with his family while mulling Pittsburgh's final offer. He also reached out to Texas coach Augie Garrido and assistant Tommy Harmon.

''(Harmon) knew if a team puts this much faith in a player you can't really turn it down,'' Bell said.

Bell strolled through the Pirates clubhouse before the team faced Cincinnati on Friday, and while he won't be there as a regular for some time, the team's investment in Bell and Cole hasn't gone unnoticed.

The Pirates flirted with first place in July and are 18 games better now than they were a year ago, the first real signs of life in years for a franchise playing under the cloud of 18 consecutive losing seasons.

''We have kind of defined ourselves on of who we are and where we're going to risk our dollars, where we're going to be most aggressive with our dollars,'' manager Clint Hurdle said. ''Without a doubt this last draft is dripping with all that.''