The man, the myth, the legend: Bubba Bell

April 9, 2009, I sat for the third night in a row freezing my tush off at a baseball game. I had caught Boston's first two games and I was now attending the Sea Dogs home opener, sitting in the bleachers. While watching the new players take the field, something about the way their outfielder Bubba Bell played got my attention.
Billy Wayne "Bubba" Bell, outfielder for the Pawtucket Red Sox, must be one of my favorite baseball players to watch. He is a dirt dog. Drafted out of Nicholls State College in the 39th round of the 2005 draft, some refer to him as "a poor man's Trot Nixon". "Bell described his selection thusly: that the Red Sox picked him and esentially said 'What-the-heck, we'll give him a shot'...the Sox didn't have much money invested in him, so essentially it was a nothing ventured/nothing gained proposition for the team." Always diving for balls and playing his hardest, he tends to be a little injury prone.
Born in Paris, TX, Bell's father gave him the nickname "Bubba" before he had even been born, believing it would be a good baseball nickname. I'd say it worked.
This season, Bell has had ample time to prove himself with the many, MANY injuries in both the major league and triple-a level. Playing on a daily basis helped him lead the team in batting and his fan club, "Bubba Bell: The man, the myth, the legend", is planning a get together at McCoy Stadium July 20th to cheer him on.
The best interview I've read was done by "Sox1Fan". Here are a few quotes:
"He certainly wasn't the biggest guy on the team (6'0", 200 lbs.), but when he hit the baseball it sounded like a large-caliber gun being shot. As he went through his paces, he did every one of the drills at 100%...and he seemed to be having a blast doing it."
"I liked Bubba Bell from the instant I first laid eyes on him."
I share the sentiment. That and his at-bat music, "Rawk Fist" by Thousand Foot Crutch, gets the fans excited.