Fern Bell
Outfielder · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1939-1940)
Fern Bell was an outfielder who played in Major League Baseball from 1939 to 1940 for the Pittsburgh Pirates, a span of 2 seasons. In 89 career games, he hit .283 with 75 hits, 2 home runs, and 35 RBI. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 364.
- AVG (Batting Average):
- Hits divided by at bats. .300 is the traditional mark of an excellent hitter.
- HR (Home Runs):
- Hits on which the batter circled the bases and scored, almost always by clearing the outfield fence.
- RBI (Runs Batted In):
- Runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's plate appearance.
- OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging):
- On-base percentage plus slugging percentage, the quickest single summary of offensive value. .900 or better is star-level.
Data updated
- Position
- Outfielder
- Bats / Throws
- R / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'0" / 180 lb
- Died
- 8/29/2000 in Rancho Mirage, CA, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1939-04-17
- Last Game
- 1940-05-06
Full name: Fernando Jerome Lee Bell
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 89 | 265 | 44 | 75 | 5 | 8 | 2 | 35 | 2 | 43 | 19 | .283 | .383 | .385 | .768 | 364 |
Career AVG .283 vs. league average .271 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OBP .383 vs. league average .339 across their career seasons — +13.1% above league average.
Career SLG .385 vs. league average .390 across their career seasons — near league average.
Career OPS .768 vs. league average .729 across their career seasons — +5.4% above league average.
Season-by-Season Batting
Click a stat to plot it across every season.
| Year | Team | Lg | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | Lg AVG | Lg OBP | Lg SLG | Lg OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | PIT | NL | 83 | 262 | 44 | 75 | 5 | 8 | 2 | 34 | 2 | 42 | 18 | .286 | .274 (+4%) | .342 (+12%) | .393 (-1%) | .735 (+5%) | 364.1 |
| 1940 | PIT | NL | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .000 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 2 seasons | 89 | 265 | 44 | 75 | 5 | 8 | 2 | 35 | 2 | 43 | 19 | .283 | — | — | — | — | 364 | ||
Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.
Game Log & Splits
View full game log (89 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 46 | 129 | 21 | 39 | 0 | 15 | .302 |
| Away | 43 | 136 | 23 | 36 | 2 | 20 | .265 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1940-05-06 | PIT | BSN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940-05-05 | PIT | BSN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1940-04-28 | PIT | CIN | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940-04-27 | PIT | CIN | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940-04-23 | PIT | CHC | W | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1940-04-22 | PIT | CHC | W | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1939-09-27 | PIT | CHC | L | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1939-09-23 | PIT | CIN | L | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1939-09-16 | PIT | BRO | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1939-09-10 | PIT | STL | L | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| Third Base | 1 |
| Left Field | 18 |
| Center Field | 42 |
| Right Field | 8 |
Fern Bell: the record in brief
Between the debut on April 17, 1939 and the final game on May 6, 1940, Fern Bell built the record summarized on this page. Every season row on the page belongs to the Pittsburgh Pirates, from 1939 through 1940. Born on January 21, 1913, in Ada, OK, USA, Bell is listed as an outfielder and batted and threw right-handed. Bell's listed size is 180 pounds on a 6-foot-0 frame. The bio records the death on August 29, 2000, in Rancho Mirage, CA, USA. Fern Bell was the playing name; the full given name is Fernando Jerome Lee.
The batting record for Bell: 89 games, 75 hits in 265 at bats, and a .283 average, plus 2 home runs and 35 RBI. Reaching base at a .383 clip and slugging .385, Bell finished with a .768 OPS. Bell hit .283 while the league hit .271 over the same span, a figure close to average. The OPS comparison is .768 to a league .729, 5.4% above average. The highest hit total in a season was 75, in 1939.
Frequently Asked Questions about Fern Bell
- What years did Fern Bell play?
- Fern Bell played in Major League Baseball from 1939 to 1940.
- Was Fern Bell a pitcher?
- No. Fern Bell was a position player (Outfielder).
- How many home runs did Fern Bell hit?
- Fern Bell hit 2 career home runs with 75 hits.
- What teams did Fern Bell play for?
- Fern Bell played for one team, the Pittsburgh Pirates (1939–1940).
- What were Fern Bell's career stats?
- In 89 games, Fern Bell had 75 hits, 2 home runs, 35 RBI, 44 runs, and 2 stolen bases, with a .283 batting average.
- What position did Fern Bell play?
- Fern Bell played primarily as an outfielder, the position where he appeared in the most games.
- How tall was Fern Bell and how much did he weigh?
- Fern Bell was listed at 6 feet and 180 pounds.
- How many home runs did Fern Bell hit each season?
- Fern Bell's home runs by season: 2 in 1939 and 0 in 1940. His most in one season was 2, in 1939.
- What was Fern Bell's career batting average?
- Fern Bell batted .283 over his career, with 75 hits in 265 at bats.
- How many RBI did Fern Bell have?
- Fern Bell drove in 35 runs in his career.
- Is Fern Bell in the Hall of Fame?
- No. Fern Bell has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.