The Toronto Blue Jays have hired David Bell as vice president of baseball operations and assistant general manager, the team announced Friday evening.

Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith and Shi Davidi were the first to report the move.

Bell spent the last six years as manager of the Cincinnati Reds. The 52-year-old Cincinnati native was fired with one week remaining in the 2024 regular season, and he was replaced by longtime Boston Red Sox and Cleveland Guardians manager Terry Francona, shortly after.

The Reds were 76-81 when Bell took over, even though they began the year with playoff aspirations. This marked a step backwards for the club, considering it went 82-80 in 2023.

Bell led Cincinnati to an overall record of 409-456, averaging 77-85 per 162 games. The Reds strung together three winning seasons between 2020 and 2023, even reaching the playoffs during the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign.

That one trip to the postseason didn’t bear much fruit for the Reds, however, considering they were eliminated from the NL Wild Card Series by the Atlanta Braves.

Before becoming a captain at Cincinnati, Bell spent one season as an assistant hitting coach for the St. Louis Cardinals and three as a bench coach. He was also the third base coach for the Chicago Cubs in 2013.

Bell’s only experience in a front office role came in 2017, when he was vice president of player development for the San Francisco Giants.

As a player, Bell played for six teams during his 12-year MLB career, including the Cardinals, Giants, Philadelphia Phillies and Seattle Mariners. The second baseman turned third baseman accumulated 1,239 hits, 123 home runs, 589 RBIs and a 15.2 WAR between 1995 and 2006.

Toronto adds Bell to a front office that enters 2025 on thin ice. Managing Director Ross Atkins has been leading the Blue Jays for 10 years now, but they haven’t won a single playoff game since their back-to-back ALCS appearances in 2015 and 2016.

With All-Stars Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette, Jordan Romano and Chris Bassitt set to enter free agency next winter, Bell joins a franchise that finds itself at a crossroads.

Bell will be responsible for overseeing the player development and physical and mental performance departments, according to the team’s announcement. He will also contribute to strategic planning decisions at the MLB level and advise the Blue Jays on player evaluations and acquisitions. He will report directly to Atkins on the baseball operations team.

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