Jay Bruce’s memorable first start helps Phillies adjust to losing Andrew McCutchen
By Dan Parzych
On the same day the Philadelphia Phillies found out they lost Andrew McCutchen for the season, Jay Bruce shined in his first start with the team.
Originally, the Philadelphia Phillies acquired Jay Bruce in a trade with the Seattle Mariners as a result of the Odubel Herrera arrest to provide an extra player to work with in the outfield, but it looks like the team may lean on him even more following the news of Andrew McCutchen.
After leaving Monday’s game against the San Diego Padres with an injury, the Phillies learned on Tuesday that McCutchen would miss the remainder of the 2019 season as a result of a torn ACL.
As if the situation surrounding Herrera wasn’t already frustrating enough, the loss of McCutchen is devastating for Philadelphia when looking at the impact made both on the field and in the dugout.
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While the offseason was focused on the key additions of Bryce Harper and Jean Segura, McCutchen was viewed as one of those underrated moves made by the Phillies that was already working wonders over the last few months.
Now, Philadelphia faces the difficult task of trying to fill the void left by McCutchen in the outfield, although what Bruce was able to accomplish during Tuesday’s 9-6 win over the Padres was certainly a big help.
Watching Bruce crush a two-run homer in the fourth inning to give the Phillies a 3-2 lead over the Padres at the time was certainly impressive, but watching him follow up the next inning with a grand slam was incredible to witness.
The Phillies obviously knew they were getting a solid hitter in Bruce when they agreed to the trade with the Mariner, but no one expected this kind of performance right away, especially during his first start with the team.
From an overall perspective, Bruce may not be able to fill the entire void left by McCutchen in the lineup, but more performances like Tuesday would certainly put Philadelphia in better position moving forward to make sure they remain a top contender in the NL East.
Even more important, Bruce’s solid performance helped the Phillies put an end to their embarrassing five-game losing streak that resulted in some fans wanting to hit the panic button.
Clearly, the fans that wanted to hit the panic button clearly jumped the gun, and as long as Bruce continues to find ways to step up like this, Philadelphia will be just fine as a team.