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The Washington Nationals entered Wednesday night's game against the New York Mets looking for revenge. The Mets won the series opener 8-1 in a game that was never in question. The Nationals have dealt with drama surrounding Nathaniel Lowe's exit, but another one of their veterans stepped up. Washington first baseman Josh Bell flirted with a career-high against Kodai Senga.
Bell dug in against the Mets' ace in the fifth inning. Senga left a cutter over the heart of the plate and Bell punished the mistake. His home run traveled 420 feet to right center field to extend Washington's lead to 5-1.
Josh Bell rockets this pitch out and extends the @Nationals lead 🚀 pic.twitter.com/Hvve21EPOI
— MLB (@MLB) August 21, 2025
Bell has made a career out of hitting pitches extremely hard. Players like Giancarlo Stanton and Oneil Cruz dominate the list of hard-hit balls each season. However, the Nationals' first baseman might have just put himself alongside both of them.
According to Major League Baseball's Sarah Langs, the home run is the hardest ball Bell has hit in more than six years.
“Josh Bell! 112.5 mph,” Langs said. “That’s the sixth-hardest hit home run of his career and hardest since a 112.9 mph HR on 8/11/19.”
The Nationals flirted with the idea of trading Bell at the deadline earlier this summer. However, Washington decided to hold on to the first baseman for the rest of the year. His production has been inconsistent this season, but he showed why he is worth keeping around with his home run against New York.
Washington has some big decisions to make, even though they are out of the playoff race. The Nationals' pitching staff has struggled mightily and their roster is in the middle of a big transition. However, Bell might be one of the few veterans that Washington keeps around for the foreseeable future.
For now, Nationals can admire Bell's home run as his team tries to avenge a loss to a division rival.
