Jay Bruce

Infobox MLB player
name = Jay Anderson Bruce


width = 300px
caption =
team = Cincinnati Reds
number = 32
position = Outfielder
birthdate = birth date and age|1987|4|3
birthplace = city-state|Beaumont|Texas
bats = Left
throws = Left
debutdate = May 27
debutyear = 2008
debutteam = Cincinnati Reds
statyear = September 28, 2008
stat1label = Batting Average
stat1value = .254
stat2label = Home Runs
stat2value = 21
stat3label = RBI
stat3value = 52
stat4label = Runs
stat4value = 63
stat5label = Stolen Bases
stat5value = 4
teams =
*Cincinnati Reds (by|2008-present)

Jay Anderson Bruce (born April 3, 1987 from Beaumont, Texas) is a Major League Baseball outfielder for the Cincinnati Reds. He was selected 12th overall in the by|2005 First-Year Player Draft. He bats and throws left-handed. He has been listed as a top prospect in both his league and as an outfielder overall. He is nicknamed Bruce Almighty by the fans.cite web
last =Matthews
first =Alan
authorlink =
coauthors =
title =2005 Top 20 Prospects: Pioneer League
work =Baseball America
publisher =Baseball America
date =September 21 2005
url =http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/minors/05league20s/pio.html
format =
doi =
accessdate =2007-06-07]

High School

Bruce attended West Brook High School in Beaumont, Texas, where he was selected as a 3rd team High School All-American OF.

Minor Leagues

Bruce's professional career began in 2005 in the GCL playing for the Reds' lowest rookie team. He hit .270 in 37 games before moving on to the Reds' rookie affiliate Billings Mustangs. There he hit for a .257 batting average with 4 home runs and 13 RBI. In by|2006, he was bumped to the Reds' low-A affiliate Dayton Dragons, where he excelled with a .291 average and 16 home runs, prompting him to be placed in many top prospect lists. For the by|2007 season, Bruce was placed with the Reds high-A team, the Sarasota Reds, then quickly promoted to the Red's AA team, the Chattanooga Lookouts. He was selected to the 2007 All-Star Futures Game. Bruce was then promoted to the Reds' AAA club, the Louisville Bats, where he ended the season by winning Baseball America's Player of the Year title.

Reds General Manager Wayne Krivsky informed Bruce and the media that Bruce would not get a look in the big leagues in 2007; however, during the Reds' final game of the 2007 season, Bruce was recognized for winning the Minor League Player of the Year award.

Major Leagues

Rookie season

Bruce was invited to the Reds' by|2008 spring training. On March 20, Bruce was reassigned to the team's Minor League camp, and started the season at Louisville. It was speculated that this move was done to prevent Bruce from accruing enough service time to qualify for "Super Two" arbitration under the Collective Bargaining Agreement.fact|date=May 2008 Bruce hit .262 with an OBP of .279 in his first spring training.

On May 27, 2008, the Reds organization called Bruce up and he made his major league debut against right-handed pitcher Ian Snell of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Bruce made his debut in center field, batting second. He went 3-for-3 with two singles and one double. Throughout the game, he drove in 2 runs, scored twice, walked twice, and stole a base. In his second game, May 28, 2008, also against Pittsburgh, he added a double, another stolen base, and two more walks. Bruce became the first Major Leaguer since 1977 to reach base in his first 6 plate appearances. On May 30 Bruce had what would come to be his first signature game in the Major Leagues. He went 4-for-5 in a 3-2, 11-inning win over the Atlanta Braves. The Reds collected only 7 hits in the game, making the feat even more impressive. Bruce doubled in the tying run (his 3rd hit off Braves starter Tom Glavine.), and scored the winning run in the 11th inning after leading off the inning with a single. Bruce's brilliant gem of a start in the Majors shone brighter yet on May 31. The Braves and the Reds tied at 7 runs each, Bruce, having already knocked two solid base hits earlier in the game, launched his first Major League home run in the bottom of the 10th inning to give the Reds the win in walk-off style. One day later, on June 1, he went 2 for 3 with a home run, a single, 2 runs batted in, and 1 base on balls. Bruce had an astounding 1.000 slugging percentage after his first six games. The only Major League player since 1969 to achieve a higher slugging percentage after his first six games was Mike Jacobs in 2005, with a mark of 1.050. On June 2, Bruce hit the third home run of his career while going 2-for-4 in Philadelphia against the Phillies' Kyle Kendrick.

In his first full week in the majors, he batted .577 (15-for-26), with 3 home runs, 3 doubles, and 9 singles in addition to 6 bases on balls. The 3 home runs came in 3 consecutive days for Bruce, with his first being a walk-off homer. He also scored 12 runs, and batted in 7 more runs. Most importantly, the Reds had a winning percentage of .714 (5-2) during his first week. Before Bruce was called up to the majors, they had a winning percentage of .451 (23-28), and had lost 5 of the last 7 games.

On June 6 against the Florida Marlins Bruce went 3 for 4 with 3 RBI in an 11-3 victory. On June 13th Bruce homered in the first inning against the Boston Red Sox and pitcher Justin Masterson in a game the Reds won 3-1. They collected only 4 hits in the win. On June 12th Bruce got his first off-day after playing 16 games in a row only to enter the game in the bottom of the 8th and double off the wall to be stranded at third. On June 25 Bruce went 1 for 5 with the game winning RBI, doubling off the wall off Toronto Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay. Bruce hit a sacrifice fly in the 10th inning to give the Reds a victory. On June 28th, Bruce collected 2 hits at Jacobs Field in Cleveland.

On July 1 Bruce went 2 for 5 with a run scored in an 11-inning loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates. The following night, July 2; Bruce homered twice (in the first two innings) and drove in a career-high 4 RBI in a 9-5 loss to the Pirates. On July 11, against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park, Bruce went 1 for 4 with a double and 3 runs scored. This helped the Reds secure a 6-5 victory. On July 17 Bruce singled, homered and scored 2 runs in a victory that snapped the New York Mets 10-game winning streak. Bruce had a 12-game hitting streak during the month of July, which was the longest for any Major League rookie in baseball for 2008.

To open August, after nearly half of a month without a home run, Bruce hit a home run in back-to-back games against the Washington Nationals. Two games later, Bruce hit his 10th home run of the season and his third of the month against the Milwaukee Brewers. In the final game of the Brewers' series, Bruce hit his 11th home run of the season. Following the trades of veteran outfielders Ken Griffey, Jr. and Adam Dunn, Bruce hit his 12th home run of the season in a loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Awards

* 2007 - Baseball America Minor League Player of the Year Award
* 2007 - Baseball America Minor League All-Star
* 2007 - FSL Mid-Season All-Star
* 2006 - Baseball American Minor League All-Star
* 2006 - MID Post-Season All-Star
* 2006 - MID Mid-Season All-Star
* 2006 - MID All-Star Game Top Star

References

External links

* [http://thebaseballcube.com/players/B/Jay-Bruce.shtml The Baseball Cube, Jay Bruce Minor League Stats]
* [http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/features/264852.html Baseball America, Player of the Year Award]
* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/b/bruceja01.shtml Jay Bruce Statistics from Baseball-Reference.com]
* [http://www.scoutingbook.com/players/p2007 The Book on Jay Bruce from ScoutingBook.com]
* [http://fantasybaseball.usatoday.com/content/player.asp?sport=MLB&id=4196 Jay Bruce Biography from USA Today]