Josh Bell Heads to Minnesota: Nationals Move On as First Base Search Continues
Josh Bell is on the move again. The well-traveled slugger has found a new home for the 2026 season, agreeing to a one-year, $7 million deal with the Minnesota Twins. For Nationals fans wondering if a reunion was ever really in the cards-well, that ship has officially sailed.
At 33, Bell adds a much-needed power presence to a Twins lineup that saw just one player eclipse his 22 home runs last season. He’s expected to split time between first base and designated hitter, giving Minnesota a switch-hitting threat who, when locked in, can carry a lineup for stretches.
This marks Bell’s seventh team in as many seasons-a journey he didn’t exactly plan, but one that’s become his reality thanks to a mix of trades and short-term deals. Drafted by the Pirates back in 2011, Bell spent his first five big-league seasons in Pittsburgh, earning an All-Star nod before being dealt to Washington in a Christmas Eve 2020 trade for pitchers Wil Crowe and Eddy Yean. (Yean, for what it’s worth, is back in the Nationals’ system on a minor league deal.)
Bell quickly became a fan favorite in D.C., not just for his bat but for his clubhouse presence. He made it known he wanted to stick around long-term.
But when the Nationals hit the reset button and committed to a full rebuild, Bell became a trade chip. He was packaged with Juan Soto in the blockbuster 2022 deadline deal that brought five prospects to Washington.
Bell’s inclusion was key-he was the piece that helped land hard-throwing pitching prospect Jarlin Susana.
From there, Bell’s career turned into a whirlwind. Two months in San Diego, then free agency.
A two-year, $33 million deal with Cleveland followed, but he was traded to Miami in Year 1. The next summer, he was on the move again-this time to Arizona at the 2024 deadline.
After another brief stint, he hit free agency once more.
The Nationals brought him back last year on a one-year, $6 million deal, hoping his veteran bat could stabilize a young lineup. Bell was all-in on the return.
He even made a conscious shift in his hitting approach, focusing more on power than average. But the early results were rough-through his first 45 games, he hit just .151 with a .254 OBP and a .289 slugging percentage.
One double, six homers, and 40 strikeouts painted a grim picture.
To his credit, Bell adjusted. He scrapped the power-first mindset and went back to simply squaring up the ball.
The turnaround was dramatic. Over his final 95 games, he slashed .282/.361/.484 with 16 doubles, 16 home runs, and only 48 strikeouts.
He also took over full-time duties at first base after Nathaniel Lowe was designated for assignment in August.
Now, the Nationals find themselves back where they were a year ago-looking for a first baseman. With young players locked into nearly every other position, the need at first is clear. But what kind of player the new front office is targeting remains a mystery.
Paul Toboni, the newly appointed president of baseball operations, hasn’t tipped his hand. It’s possible Bell didn’t fit the new mold-maybe defense is more of a priority now, or perhaps the front office is looking for a longer-term solution.
One thing’s for sure: the options are thinning out. With Bell and Pete Alonso (who signed a five-year, $155 million deal with the Orioles) off the board, the list of available first basemen is shrinking. Cody Bellinger remains the biggest name, but he’s expected to command a nine-figure deal and is likely headed to a contender.
There are still some intriguing, more affordable names out there-Ryan O’Hearn, Luis Arraez, Rhys Hoskins, Paul Goldschmidt, Wilmer Flores, Ty France, Carlos Santana, Rowdy Tellez, and Justin Turner all remain unsigned. Toboni could also explore the trade market.
With Alonso now in Baltimore, the Orioles might be open to dealing Ryan Mountcastle or top prospect Coby Mayo. Internally, Luis Garcia Jr. could see time at first, though that would create a hole at second.
In the meantime, Toboni is staying active. On Monday night, the Nationals announced a swap of pitching prospects with the Red Sox-left-hander Jake Bennett heads to Boston, while right-hander Luis Perales comes to D.C.
It’s a one-for-one deal involving two arms coming off Tommy John surgery. Bennett, a 2022 second-round pick and former Oklahoma teammate of Jake Irvin, had his elbow surgery in September 2023.
He returned strong this season, posting a 2.27 ERA and 1.075 WHIP over 75 1/3 innings across three levels. He also pitched in the Arizona Fall League, striking out 25 with just five walks in 20 innings.
The Nationals added him to their 40-man roster in November to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft.
Perales, 22, was signed out of Venezuela in 2019 and quickly rose through Boston’s system. Before his elbow injury in June 2024, he was ranked as high as the 57th-best prospect in baseball by Baseball America. He returned late in the year and flashed the same electric stuff in the Arizona Fall League-19 strikeouts in 11 1/3 innings with a fastball that touched 100 mph-but also issued 11 walks.
He’s considered Boston’s fifth-best prospect by Baseball America and seventh by MLB Pipeline. But with two minor league options already used and no big-league experience yet, there’s not much room for error. Still, Toboni knows Perales well from his time in Boston’s front office and clearly believes in the right-hander’s upside.
So while Josh Bell’s second stint in Washington ends quietly, the Nationals’ offseason is anything but. The search for a first baseman continues, the pitching pipeline is being reshaped, and a new front office is putting its stamp on the roster-one move at a time.