Michael John Bell (born October 14, 1972) is an American

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

coach and former

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

. Bell is the head coach of the

Pittsburgh Panthers baseball The Pittsburgh Panthers baseball is the college baseball, NCAA Division I intercollegiate baseball program of the University of Pittsburgh, often referred to as "Pitt", located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Pitt baseball team competes in the A ...

team.

Amateur career

Bell attended Riverview High School in

Sarasota, Florida Sarasota () is a city in and the county seat of Sarasota County, Florida, United States. It is located in Southwest Florida, the southern end of the Tampa Bay area, and north of Fort Myers, Florida, Fort Myers and Punta Gorda, Florida, Punta Gord ...

. As a member of the baseball team, Bell was a two-time All-Area selection. Upon graduation from Riverview, Bell enrolled at

Pasco–Hernando State College Pasco–Hernando State College (PHSC) is a public college in Florida with campuses in Pasco and Hernando counties. The college was established in 1967 by the Florida Legislature, and then opened to students in the fall of 1972. It is part of t ...

. Bell was the first ever baseball signee in the history of Pasco–Hernando State, helping the Bobcats build their field, and hitting the first

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

in program history. After graduating from Pasco–Hernando State, Bell accepted a baseball scholarship offer from

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

. In 1993, he played

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

with the

Bourne Braves The Bourne Braves are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Bourne, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's West Division. The Braves play their home games at Doran Park (ballpark) ...

of the

Cape Cod Baseball League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over 1,000 forme ...

. Bell helped the Seminoles to back-to-back

College World Series The College World Series (CWS), officially the NCAA Men's College World Series (MCWS), is a baseball tournament held each June in Omaha, Nebraska. It is the culmination of the NCAA Division I baseball tournament—featuring 64 teams in the ...

appearances in 1994 and 1995.

Professional career

The

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos () were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in the National League (baseball), National League ...

selected Bell in the tenth round as a pitcher, with the 563rd overall selection, of the

1995 MLB Draft The 1995 Major League Baseball draft began June 1995 to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order is the reverse order of the 1994 MLB season standings. In addition, compensation picks were distributed for players who did not s ...

. The Expos assigned Bell to the

Vermont Expos Vermont () is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the north. According to the mo ...

of the Rookie-level

New York–Penn League The New York–Penn League (NYPL) was a Minor League Baseball league that operated in the northeastern United States from 1939 to 2020. Classified as a Class A Short Season league, its season started in June, after major-league teams signed th ...

, where he made seven appearances before he was promoted to the

Albany Polecats The Albany Polecats were a minor league baseball team in Albany, Georgia. They were a low-A-class team that played in the South Atlantic League and were a farm team affiliated with both the Montreal Expos and the Baltimore Orioles during the fr ...

where he appeared in 12 games and had a 3.48

ERA An era is a span of time. Era or ERA may also refer to: * Era (geology), a subdivision of geologic time * Calendar era Education * Academy of European Law (German: '), an international law school * ERA School, in Melbourne, Australia * E ...

. Bell pitched for the

Delmarva Shorebirds The Delmarva Shorebirds are a Minor League Baseball team based in Salisbury, Maryland. They are members of the Carolina League and the Single-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. Their home games are played at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium. The Shor ...

of the Class A

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its h ...

and the

West Palm Beach Expos The West Palm Beach Expos were a Florida State League minor league baseball team which existed from 1969 through the 1997 season in West Palm Beach, Florida. History The West Palm Beach Expos were a Class A affiliate of the Montreal Expos and pla ...

of the Class A-Advanced

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...

in 1996, finishing the year with a 2.88 ERA in 53 games. In 1997, he played the entire season with West Palm Beach. He returned to Class A-Advanced when Expos changed their affiliate to the

Jupiter Hammerheads The Jupiter Hammerheads are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are located in the town of Jupiter in Palm Beach County, Florida, and play their home games at Roger Dean ...

. Bell finished the season with the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

organization with the

Frederick Keys The Frederick Keys are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. The Keys are based in Frederick, Maryland. The franchise is named for the "Star-Spangled Banner" writer Francis Scott Key, a native of Frederick County. A new team ...

. He had 7 wins, with a 2.94 ERA and 7 saves. Bell played the final two seasons of his career with the

Bowie Baysox The Chesapeake Baysox are a Minor League Baseball team located in Bowie, Maryland. They are the Double-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, and play in the Eastern League. Their home ballpark is Prince George's Stadium. From 1993 to 2024, th ...

. Bell flipped between long relief and starting, recording a 7–8 record with a 4.90 ERA.

Coaching career

Following the conclusion of his playing career, Bell was named the head coach of Brandon High School in

Brandon, Florida Brandon is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area. The p ...

. He led the school to a regional semifinal finish in 2002 as well as a Class 4A-District 9 championship. He was named area coach of the year by the Florida Athletic Coaches Association. After two seasons at Brandon, Bell was named the pitching coach for

Florida Southern College Florida Southern College (Florida Southern, Southern or FSC) is a private college in Lakeland, Florida. In 2019, the student population at FSC consisted of 3,073 students along with 130 full-time faculty members. It offers undergraduate, gradua ...

. The Mocs earned two berths in the NCAA Regionals, going 2–2 in Bell's two seasons with the team. On August 9, 2004, Bell was hired as the pitching coach for the

Tennessee Volunteers baseball The Tennessee Volunteers baseball team represents the University of Tennessee in NCAA Division I college baseball. Along with most other Tennessee athletic teams, the baseball team participates in the of the Southeastern Conference. The Volunte ...

team. In his first season with the Volunteers, Bell helped

Luke Hochevar Luke Anthony Hochevar (; born September 15, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played college baseball at the University of Tennessee, and played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Royals from 2007 throu ...

bounce back from an injury to earn the

Southeastern Conference Baseball Pitcher of the Year The Southeastern Conference Pitcher of the Year is a baseball award given to the Southeastern Conference's most outstanding pitcher. The award was first given following the 2003 season. It is selected by the league's head coaches, who are not allow ...

and the

Roger Clemens Award The Roger Clemens Award was an award that honored the top NCAA Division I college baseball pitcher of the year. The award was created prior to the 2004 season and succeeded the Rotary Smith Award. :''"Roger Clemens has become synonymous with exc ...

. In 2007, Bell was named the pitching coach for the

Oklahoma Sooners baseball Oklahoma Sooners baseball is the NCAA Division I college baseball, collegiate baseball team of the University of Oklahoma (OU) based in Norman, Oklahoma. The Oklahoma Baseball tradition is long and storied, with two national championships in 19 ...

program. On June 24, 2011, Bell was hired as the pitching coach at

Florida State Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

. On July 10, 2018, Bell was named the 8th head coach in the history of the

program.

Head coaching record

References

External links