Heath Justin Bell was born on September 29,1977 and is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher.
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38 Facts About Heath Bell
2.
Heath Bell was awarded the Delivery Man of the Year Award and The Sporting News Reliever of the Year Award.
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3.
Heath Bell moved on to community college, where he was an All-American.
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4.
Heath Bell began his professional career with the New York Mets, making his major league debut in 2004, and spending three seasons at both the minor and major league levels.
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5.
From 2010 through 2011, Heath Bell successfully converted 41 straight save opportunities, which tied Hoffman's team record.
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6.
Heath Bell attended Columbus Tustin Middle School and Tustin High School in Tustin, California, which is about 50 miles from Oceanside.
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7.
Heath Bell attended Santa Ana College where he was named a freshman All-American in 1997.
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9.
Heath Bell did not give up any runs and was named the league's Graduate of the Year in 2011.
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10.
Heath Bell was selected by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the 69th round of the 1997 amateur draft, but did not sign.
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11.
Heath Bell did not begin his professional career until 1998, when he signed with the New York Mets as an undrafted free agent.
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12.
Heath Bell made his major league debut on August 24,2004 pitching two scoreless innings with three strikeouts against the San Diego Padres.
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13.
Heath Bell said coaches in the Mets' minor leagues told him his best opportunity to succeed was to leave the organization as other people did not believe in him.
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14.
On November 15,2006, Heath Bell was traded to San Diego, along with pitcher Royce Ring, for outfielder Ben Johnson and relief pitcher Jon Adkins.
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15.
Heath Bell was part of the Padres bullpen, where he replaced Scott Linebrink as the 8th inning setup man before Trevor Hoffman closed games.
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16.
In 2009, Heath Bell received the Delivery Man of the Month Award in April after converting all eight of his save opportunities in.
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17.
Heath Bell ended the 2009 season leading the National League in saves with 42 in his first year as a full-time closer.
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18.
In 2010, Heath Bell was named to his second consecutive NL All-Star team in July.
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19.
Heath Bell did not allow any of his nine inherited runners to score, and he had six saves of more than one inning pitched.
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20.
Heath Bell won the Delivery Man of the Year Award, The Sporting News NL Reliever of the Year Award, and the NL Rolaids Relief Man Award.
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21.
Heath Bell converted his first seven save opportunities of 2011, which tied him with Hoffman for the Padres club record of 41 consecutive successful save conversions.
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22.
Heath Bell said he planned to accept arbitration from the Padres if they did not agree on a multi-year deal.
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23.
Heath Bell finished the season 43 of 48 in save opportunities with a 2.
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24.
Heath Bell wanted a three-year contract from the Padres, who instead offered two years with an option for 2014.
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25.
The Padres offered arbitration, but Heath Bell backed away from his earlier intention to accept arbitration.
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26.
On December 5,2011, Heath Bell signed a three-year, $27 million contract with the Miami Marlins.
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27.
Heath Bell said he had been battling an undisclosed personal issue, and he felt "completely lost" in Miami being apart from his family.
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28.
Heath Bell acknowledged his teammates likely lost respect for him after the incident.
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29.
Heath Bell began the season as a middle reliever behind Putz and setup man David Hernandez.
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30.
On December 3,2013, Heath Bell was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays in a three-team deal involving the Cincinnati Reds.
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31.
Heath Bell was designated for assignment on May 4,2014, before being released on May 11.
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32.
On May 16,2014, Heath Bell agreed to a minor league deal with the Baltimore Orioles.
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33.
On December 22,2014, Heath Bell signed a minor league contract with the Washington Nationals that included an invitation to major league spring training, however he was released on March 23.
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34.
Heath Bell announced his retirement from baseball the following day.
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35.
Keith Law of ESPN wrote in 2011 that Heath Bell had a straight fastball and pitches in the upper half of the zone, and benefited from pitching in the spacious Petco Park as a Padre.
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36.
Heath Bell is the cousin of actor and singer-songwriter Drake Bell, and former basketball player Erik Meek.
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37.
Heath Bell joined the Hope For Leadership Foundation, a Christian-based movement that promotes sports and civic programs for inner-city kids.
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38.
Heath Bell participated in a first-person story with Athletes For God, telling the role his faith played in his journey through the minors and major leagues.
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