1998. That season, he batted .314 with 41 doubles and 22 home runs, good for an OPS of .855 as the Astros won a franchise-record 102 games. After the Killer B's had gained national attention, journalist Dayn Perry cheerfully noted in 1999 that the Astros, "in pursuit of arcane history, used eight players whose last names began with 'B.'" including Bagwell, Paul Bako, Glen Barker, Bell, Sean Bergman, Lance Berkman, Biggio, and Tim Bogar. However, Bell's performance slipped substantially that year, and his .236 batting average and .656 OPS made him considered to be one of the worst everyday players in the league. He compounded the problem in an ill-timed confrontation with manager Larry Dierker on July 22. Dierker had returned to the field that day after having recovered from a near-fatal grand mal seizure during a game on June 13 and subsequent emergency brain surgery. Bell was upset that Dierker had moved him from second to sixth in the batting order, ranting after the game that "it's a slap in the face to be dropped to the sixth spot. I'm to the point now that I feel like I'm not wanted." Many Astros fans were upset that Bell had chosen to criticize Dierker on a day honoring him, and Dierker ultimately pulled Bell from the starting lineup later that season. At that point, the Astros viewed Bell as an expensive liability, and on December 23, they traded him and star pitcher Mike Hampton to the New York Mets for Roger Cedeño, Octavio Dotel, and Kyle Kessel. When assembling this trade, the Astros let it be known that they would not trade Hampton unless a trade partner was willing to also take Bell in the deal. New York Bell was unfazed by the deal. When informed that he'd been traded to the Mets, he said, "Christmas came early for me. I'm very happy. I told my agent I'm going to run, I'm so excited." With Bell as their starting right fielder, the Mets made the playoffs as the National League Wild Card. On August 21, Bell got the opportunity to pitch the eighth inning of a blowout against the Padres. His first pitch, which Bell described as an eephus pitch, was clocked at 47 MPH, and he ultimately surrendered three hits and three walks, giving up four earned runs and one unearned run (resulting from an error by catcher Todd