Get to know No. 10 Draft prospect Tyler Bell

Tyler Bell is MLB Pipeline’s No. 10-ranked prospect for the 2026 Draft. Here is everything you need to know about Bell.

FAST FACTS

MLB Pipeline ranking: No. 10
Position: SS
Height/weight: 6-foot-1, 190 lbs.
Bats/throws: S/R
Age: 21 (Born June 30, 2005)
School: Kentucky

MLB PIPELINE SCOUTING GRADES (20-to-80 scale)

Hit: 50
Power: 50
Run: 50
Arm: 55
Field: 55
Overall: 55

1. His role model is exactly who you'd expect

Bell is a switch-hitting shortstop. And yes, he knows who you immediately thought of when you heard that. He's thinking it, too. Asked at the 2026 MLB Draft Combine who he models his game after, his answer, unsurprisingly, was Francisco Lindor.

"Switch-hitting shortstop, plays Gold Glove defense at short, I think he's a great guy to look up to and he always has fun out there playing," Bell said.

Can't argue with that.

2. Switch-hitting is second nature

If you were to ask every big league switch-hitter how old they were when they picked up the skill, you'd get quite the range of answers. What would Bell's be?

Three. Bell was 3 years old and still hitting off a plastic tee when his dad first prompted him to try this famously incredibly difficult task. And although he's perfectly willing to admit he resisted the discomfort, he also describes that experience as being the one that really brought him around to baseball as a little guy.

For such a young player, Bell also has a very clear understanding of his profile from both sides of the plate. A natural righty, he's developed more power as a left-handed hitter but has a better opposite-field approach from the right side, from which he's more of a contact hitter, as he explained back in 2025.

3. This isn't his first rodeo

You might say Tyler's name rings a bell. (Apologies.) That's probably because he's been through all of this once before, and while it isn't uncommon for a player to be drafted more than once, what this player is about to do is highly unusual.

In 2024, as a high school senior, Bell was already drawing quite a lot of attention. He was even invited to that year's MLB Draft Combine, where he performed exceptionally well, earning a spot in Baseball America's list of 10 standout performers on Day 1 (subscription required).

Bell would go on to be drafted 66th overall out of Lincoln-Way East High School in Frankfort, Ill., by the Tampa Bay Rays. When he elected to honor his commitment to the University of Kentucky, he became that draft's highest-selected player not to sign a professional contract. Now projected to go in the first round, his odds of making the jump to pro ball are quite a bit higher.

4. He's already seen international competition

Bell was one of many top prospects to play for Team USA on the collegiate level in 2025, with his teammates including Roch Cholowsky (Pipeline's No. 2 Draft prospect), Vahn Lackey (No. 3), Drew Burress (No. 7) and Ryder Helfrick (No. 11).

Quite the achievement, right?

“It’s very, very cool, but my goal is still set on being a big leaguer and representing Team USA as a big leaguer down the road,” Bell would later tell Baseball Prospect Journal. “I just want to stay consistent, tackle today and do as well as I can today, and then outdo it tomorrow.”

5. He's all about baseball

The term "baseball rat" is thrown around quite frequently in pro ball, but some guys have really earned it. Bell, already, would appear to be one of those guys.

"We’ve had high-profile players just want to come in and just watch him [hit]," UK head coach Nick Mingione told the Lexington Herald Leader back in February. "I go, 'Hey, man, you probably should have showed up at 5:45 this morning, because he was here at 6 o’clock this morning, hitting on his own.'"

That anecdote won't prepare you for where this is going.

In Kentucky's Feb. 13 season opener, Bell hurt his left shoulder when his arm got stuck on the ground as he dove for a ball in the infield. The extent of the injury wasn't immediately made public, with initial reports only stating he would be out "indefinitely." "Indefinitely" in this case really meant "a couple of weeks," and he was back serving as a designated hitter by March 6, which would suggest the injury was nothing too serious. In reality, Bell had torn the labrum in his non-throwing arm, and he played his entire sophomore season -- eventually even returning to the infield -- nursing that major injury. All in the name of playing out what might have been his final season at Kentucky.

Bell will at some point require surgery, which is likely to delay the start of his professional career. That, of course, isn't ideal. But his commitment to play through that pain certainly made it onto his scouting report.