Josh Bell’s season in Minnesota was more than a productive stop on a one-year deal. He left the Twins with numbers that stand on their own, and with a presence in the clubhouse that could stick around long after he’s gone.
At the plate, Bell put together one of the better seasons of his career. He finished with 96 RBI, his second-highest single-season total, plus a .255/.319/.419 line, 21 home runs and his first two stolen bases since 2018 across 154 games.
The late-season surge was especially loud. From Aug. 1 on, Bell hit .284/.353/.449 with eight homers, 33 RBI, a 9.4% walk rate and a 13.9% strikeout rate in 202 plate appearances.
Still, the numbers only tell part of the story.
Bell’s biggest imprint came with the young position players the Twins brought up over the final two months. He made a point of pulling them in, giving them a veteran voice and, in some cases, a seat at dinner after games.
Shortstop Kaelen Culpepper called him “Probably my best friend in the clubhouse. We talk about everything.
It’s not always about baseball. We play a lot of baseball every day, so you can kind of get overwhelmed by it a little bit, but he’s been a huge help.”
Utility man Ben Ross had a similar story about Bell’s welcome. “I think one of my first [road] trips, we did ground balls on the infield before the game, and then afterwards JB came up to me and was like, ‘Hey, let’s go to dinner tonight,’” Ross said.
“And I was like, ‘Well, maybe.’ Then I looked at KC, and he was like, ‘Go.’
That’s not an opportunity you can turn down, so I’m super thankful for him opening his arms and dragging me along and showing me the ropes of how it goes.”
Bell said that kind of connection came naturally. “It really wasn’t hard,” said Bell.
“You’ve got special talents with him (Culpepper), Emma, and Walk getting called up. You don’t really have to tell them much.
You just sit back, relax, and watch them play. When you have questions, you can just be honest with them.
I don’t think anybody is hungrier than those three. They definitely will have a lot more jerseys in the stands next year and give the fans a reason to cheer all season long.”
He also made clear he would be open to coming back to Minnesota in 2027. Bell liked the culture manager Shelton built, and he and other veterans, including Buxton, helped hold it together for the younger core.
After Sunday’s 6-4 win over the Texas Rangers to close the season, Shelton praised Bell’s full-body impact. “I think we’ve talked about him all year long for what he’s meant in our clubhouse, but he’s ended up with 94 or 95 RBI,” Shelton said.
“That’s an unbelievable season. You don’t want to undersell the contribution on the field, because I think we’ve talked about so much in the clubhouse.”
Even with the Twins missing their playoff goal, Bell’s influence looks set to carry forward. The organization’s next wave - including Culpepper, Walker Jenkins and Emmanuel Rodriguez - will inherit the standard Bell helped reinforce, and that could make his time in Minnesota matter for years to come.
“There’s not a lot of places where guys will show up and put their shower shoes on and go hang out in the cage, play games, just vibe for hours and hours before the game, as soon as you show up,” said Josh Bell. “It made it fun to show up every day.
It was a testament to him and the coaching staff as a whole. Definitely a pleasure to be around all these guys.”
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