Josh Bell embraces role as a powerful voice for the Pirates

As the lone returning All-Star for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Josh Bell was expected to become the new face of the franchise.

With his willingness to use his public platform, Bell has shed his soft-spoken image to become one of the biggest and boldest voices for the Pirates in speaking out against racial and social injustice issues.

Bell joined other major league players to start the #SocialReformSunday movement on Twitter, a hashtag with hopes of helping the healing, and said he plans to get more involved in the community with school-based programs and organizations like R.B.I. (Reviving Baseball in Inner-Cities).

“First and foremost, I grew up as a Black kid in America; and, secondly, as a baseball player,” Bell said Saturday on a Zoom conference call from Day 2 of training camp at PNC Park. “I can talk on the Black experience. I can talk about the baseball side. I feel like social justice is something that a lot of people are learning right now.”

During the downtime while baseball was shut down amid the coronavirus crisis, Bell described his “disbelief, disgust and a little bit of anger” over the death of George Floyd. A 47-year-old Black man, Floyd was killed while being detained by four Minneapolis police officers May 25. Bell was one of six major league players to participate in a roundtable discussion on MLB Network Radio and later joined Harold Reynolds for a discussion on the topic.

The 27-year-old Bell called the civil rights movement “an awesome opportunity” for Black athletes to voice their concerns and raise social consciousness. When protests came to Pittsburgh, Bell was fueled by his frustrations and wanted to participate after watching helicopters fly past. That feeling changed after a conversation with his girlfriend when the protests were followed by rioting about how he could make a more meaningful impact.

“My girlfriend said to me, like, ‘You’re going to make a lot more of an impact with your platform than going to this riot right now. That’s how people get hurt. That’s where the whole conversation turns bad. If Josh Bell’s at a protest, it’s a good thing. If Josh Bell’s at a riot, that’s a terrible thing. That’s something that could change your career in a heartbeat,’” Bell said. “So, we had that conversation and, from that point on, I reached out to a few guys in the league to start the Social Reform Sunday.”

Bell did so with the support of the Pirates, from the front office to the coaching staff to his teammates. Starting pitcher Trevor Williams reached out with a phone call and said he has been awed by how Bell has become outspoken against police brutality against Black people and systemic racism in America.

“It really is amazing because, you’re right, he is not very outspoken about certain things,” Williams said. “He keeps his head down and works his (tail) off on his craft. He is a student of the game who loves to hit. He loves baseball. And for him to see this as an opportunity as a Black athlete, and as an All-Star, and as the face of the Pirates — for him to say this and to speak out against it and be educated and say some things that don’t toe the line but gets in the face of, ‘This is a problem. We need to address it,’ I’m really proud of him for accepting that responsibility and really take that going forward.”

What Bell found was acceptance and support that former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s message failed to receive when he protested the same issues four years ago by kneeling during the national anthem before NFL games. Professional athletes saw Kaepernick’s career “forever changed,” Bell said, and felt “silenced.”

“The things that get us up every day, grinding to be the best he can be the best we can be in this game, that was in jeopardy with that conversation,” Bell said. “As of right now, it seems like everyone’s all ears. Everyone’s pretty surprised to learn about the war on drugs and the war on crime and who was targeted and what’s actually going on in the world today, how many people we have incarcerated compared to everyone else in the world. The numbers are there, and the conversation can be had, and I think that conversation leads to change, so I’m excited for it.”

Now, even as Bell wants his voice to be heard, he is attempting to remain politically correct and not bring his emotions to the forefront of the conversation. More interested in being productive than provocative, Bell said he is doing his best to learn while trying not “to be the guy who has the headline for something negative.”

Pirates manager Derek Shelton is thrilled to see the evolution of his All-Star first baseman, as not only the face of the franchise but a powerful voice for it.

“I think it’s awesome that Josh Bell is a leader in our clubhouse, and I think it’s even cooler that he’s a leader in our community,” Shelton said. “I think it’s a testament to who he is as a person and how educated he is, in terms of the things he speaks about, and how purposeful he is.That people put him at the forefront of our organization, I don’t think we could have a better guy there.”