Heath Bell on Ozzie Guillen: “It’s hard to respect a guy that doesn’t tell you the truth”

Heath Bell made a local radio appearance on “The Dan Sileo Show” in Miami today and had some not-so-nice things to say about Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen.

“It’s hard to respect a guy that doesn’t tell you the truth or doesn’t tell you face to face,” Bell said on 560-WQAM. “There’s probably reasons why.”

Bell is upset with how his demotion from the closer role was handled and with his lack of an opportunity to reclaim the job despite pitching fairly well of late:

I stunk in April, plain and simple. I said I stunk, I worked hard, I busted my butt. I think I’ve had a tremendous second half. I’m not closing–I know that. But I just kept my mouth shut because I want to regain what I had, and I feel like I can’t do that. …

It’s just one of those things that–what you see is what you get. I’m not going to be two-faced. I’m not going to sneak around your back and say this and that.

Ripping someone on the radio doesn’t count as “around your back” does it? Just double-checking.

Bell’s beef with Guillen is no surprise, as the Showtime cameras captured the two of them having a relatively heated discussion in the manager’s office before “The Franchise” reality series was canceled earlier this season.

Bell has a 5.19 ERA overall this season, but since being stripped of closing duties in June he’s thrown 26 innings with a 3.12 ERA and 25/7 K/BB ratio. He’s owed $9 million next season and $9 million in 2014, so odds are whether Guillen is still the Marlins’ manager or not Bell will get another crack at ninth-inning duties.

I hope Hanley Ramirez and Fredi Gonzalez are getting a good chuckle out of all this, at least.