The Philadelphia Phillies were one of 13 teams that attended the showcase of 32-year-old Cuban outfielder Alexei Bell in Mexicali on Monday, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
The other attending teams included just one other National League East rival, the Miami Marlins, in addition to the following: Arizona Diamondbacks, Los Angeles Dodgers, Kansas City Royals, Toronto Blue Jays, San Fransisco Giants, New York Yankees, St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland Athletics, Boston Red Sox, San Diego Padres and Cincinnati Reds.
In a Jan. 14 article, Rosenthal writes:
Cuban right fielder Alexei Bell says he first dreamed of playing major-league baseball when he was 18. But he never wanted to defect, the path chosen by so many of his teammates from the Cuban national team. Married with a 9-year-old son, he wanted to leave his country legally, or not at all.
Now Bell is 32 and eager to play in the majors. He recently departed Cuba with the permission of the government. At some point, he will be a free agent. The question, all these years later, is how teams will value him as an older player.
A .319/.414/.539 career hitter, Bell's peak season came in 2007 when he hit for 31 home runs and 111 runs-batted-in over just 90 games with the Avispas de Santiago de Cuba. Bell spent the entirety of last season with the Quebec Capitales of the Canadian-American Association, where he hit .317/.363/.424 with 18 extra-base hits in 59 games.
Bell must first be cleared by Major League Baseball before he is made an unrestricted free agent. Given his age and years of professional experience, notes Rosenthal, he would not count against the Phillies' international bonus pool limits if signed.
Matt Rappa (@mattrappasports) is managing editor of Philliedelphia.com.
