Despite the fact Cincinnati Reds teammate Ken Griffey Jr. is just one home run away from 600 for his career, it is rookie Jay Bruce that has stolen the spotlight away from his teammates incredible milestone. Taking nothing away from Griffey and his inevitable run at history, but Bruce has been absolutely unbelievable during his first week as a big leaguer. The outfielder is hitting .577 with three home runs and seven RBIs, not to mention an 1.038 SLG, a .667 OBP, and two stolen bases. Bruce has even proven to be clutch. His first Major League home run was a walk-off bomb in the 10th inning to beat the Atlanta Braves.
Last night, as Griffey sat just one home run shy of 600 for the first game, it was Bruce knocking a 3rd inning home run as Junior watched on deck. In the 7th, Bruce went opposite way to knock in a run to finish his day 2 for 3 with a home run, 2 RBIs, 2 runs scored, and a walk. It was just another day at the ballpark for Bruce.
For a 21-year old Texas kid, Bruce sure isn't afraid of the spotlight. He has handled every different kind of pressure, from being the top prospect in baseball to being called the "savior" of the Reds before his Major League debut to his extra winning walk-off shot and finally to his spotlight stealing of Griffey yesterday. So far, the Reds gamble has paid off tremendously in their decision to call-up Bruce. While no one can expect Bruce to continue at this pace for an entire season, he continued his "Bruce Almighty" heroics in the first game of a four game series against the Philadelphia Phillies. In his first career road game, Bruce adding two more hits, including yet another home run, two runs scored, and an RBI. "Bruce Almighty" is making those days seem routine, and yet he has just been in the Major Leagues for one week. The start to his career has been unprecendented and just unbelievable. This just looks to be the beginning of great things to come for Jay Bruce.
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