The Cincinnati Reds have a new manager in David Bell

There has been quite a bit of turmoil with the Cincinnati Reds the last few years. The team has performed, well, poorly to say the least. Joey Votto has already expressed his displeasure at the sheer amount of losing that has occurred and the team’s struggles (as well as how those struggles were handled) ultimately cost manager Bryan Price his job back in April.

The team played better under interim manager Jim Riggleman and there is some talent on the roster, in particular Votto, Eugenio Suarez, and Scooter Gennett, but it is pretty clear that the team will still be rebuilding for the next year or two. With that in mind, the Reds decided who will helm the team for the next few years.

David Bell has connections with the Reds organization as his first coaching job was as the manager of the Reds’ Double-A affiliate. After several years working in the minors, Bell had assistant coaching gigs with the Cubs and Cardinals before he became the vice president of player personnel for the Giants. This background in player development not only made him an attractive candidate to the Reds, but Bell’s name even came up in the Giants’ general manager opening. Fortunately for Cincinnati, they were able to lock Bell up.

For Cincinnati fans that think this hire will immediately turn the team into a contender again, you may want to pump the brakes a bit. The Reds are a team that will need to improve significantly, in particular on the pitching side, in order to be relevant again. However, they do have some interesting prospects down in the minors on both sides of the ball and now they have a manager that has experience in how to shepherd young players.