Born in 1959 in San Pedro De Macoris, Dominican Republic, Bell remains the only Blue Jay to win the American League MVP Award. His monster 1987 campaign – that saw him belt a then-club record 47 homers and lead the league in RBIs (134), total bases (369) and extra base hits (83) – is one of the best in franchise history.
Plucked from the Philadelphia Phillies in the 1980 Rule 5 draft, the power-hitting outfielder was an offensive force in Toronto for parts of nine seasons. A three-time all-star and three-time Silver Slugger Award winner, Bell socked over 20 homers in six seasons and recorded more than 85 RBIs seven times with the Jays. He also smashed a major league record three home runs on Opening Day against the Kansas City Royals in 1988. The former slugger ranks in the top five in most of the club’s all-time offensive categories, including fourth in RBIs (740), total bases (2,201) and extra-base hits (471) and sixth in home runs (202). For his efforts, he was named the club’s MVP four times and was an inaugural member of the Blue Jays’ Level of Excellence in 1996.
His tenure with the Jays was followed by three seasons in Chicago with the Cubs (1991) and White Sox (1992, 1993). He retired after the 1993 campaign with 265 career homers and 1,002 RBIs.
CAREER MAJOR LEAGUE STATISTICS
| G | AB | R | H | D | T | HR | RBI | TB | BB | SO | SB | OBP | SLG | AVG |
| 1587 | 6123 | 814 | 1702 | 308 | 34 | 265 | 1002 | 2873 | 331 | 771 | 67 | .316 | .469 | .278 |
For season by season career stats click HERE.
