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June 4, 2008

Lamar's Jim Gilligan tops true believers on Bruce stardom

Bob West

PORT ARTHUR — Lamar University baseball coach Jim Gilligan, who is not prone to making outrageous statements, blew me away Tuesday morning with his assessment of Jay Bruce, the former West Brook High School great who has authored one of the most amazing first weeks in Major League history.

“Within the next five years, he’s going to be regarded as the best player in baseball,” Gilligan said. “It may be sooner. Be sure you save your column and get back to me when it happens.”

Gilligan then spent the next 10 minutes comparing Bruce to Mickey Mantle and Ken Griffey Jr., insisted the recently turned 21-year-old Cincinnati Reds phenom could have made the big time as a southpaw pitcher and said if he were a betting man he’d give even odds the 6-3, 205 pound centerfielder will ultimately be regarded as a once-in-a-lifetime player.

Gilligan isn’t the only one raving about Baseball America’s 2007 Minor League Player of the Year. On a nightly basis, ESPN’s Baseball Tonight crew is digging deep for superlatives to describe a soaring young star whose first seven starts produced a trio of two-hit games, a pair of three-hit games and one with four hits.

Bruce is so hot that when he went 2-for-4 Monday night his average dropped 14 points to .577. While going 15-for-26, he’s delivered three homers — one of them a game-winning walk-off job. He’s also had three doubles, walked three times and stolen a base, while injecting life into a struggling Cincinnati team.

“What a remarkable story Jay Bruce is,” Reds manager Dusty Baker declared after his walkoff blast against Atlanta Saturday night. “I’ve never seen a better story. If he’s living a dream, I’d like to be in that dream.”

Nobody, of course, is more excited about Jay’s spectacular debut than his dad, Joe. A pretty fair first baseman at now defunct South Park High School in Beaumont, papa Bruce says he’s long known his son would be a major leaguer and a good one.

“But I never expected it to start like this,” Joe admitted. “The only way I can describe my feelings is to say watching this has been indescribable. Every time I look up, it just keeps getting better. It’s been such an emotional time, mentally and physically.”

Bruce confides that he knew early on his son was a prodigy.

“I got him a plastic bat and ball when he was right at a year old. He had just started walking. He picked up the bat in a perfect grip for a left-hand hitter. I threw the ball to him and he slammed it back into my face. I knew right then he had a gift. I told his mother we have a left-hander who can already hit.”

The Cincinnati organization was so confident Bruce was a can’t-miss prospect that it steadfastly said no when other teams asked for him in trades, while it desperately pursued pitching help. Eventually the Reds wound up dealing another star outfielder, Josh Hamilton, to the Texas Rangers for a quality starter.

All Hamilton has done is destroy AL pitching with a triple crown tear of 15 home runs, 63 RBI and a .328 average. Bruce insures, however, that there is no second guessing.

Among the many true believers is Rick Sweet, his manager at AAA Louisville where Bruce was hitting .364 with 10 homers and 37 RBI when the promotion came.

“I have taken some heat for comparing him to some people in the game, but the kid is special,” Sweet told MLB.com. “He can handle anything that comes his way.”

Back in Beaumont, Ozen High School coach Royal Thomas marvels at what he’s seeing out of the cross-town slugger. But Thomas, who spent 10 years in professional baseball, going as high as AAA and being in major league spring training camps with Atlanta and Toronto, isn’t surprised.

“From watching him, I knew it was just a matter of time,” Thomas said. “It’s hard to tell how quickly a guy can get to the top, and usually there is a period of adjustment to major league pitching. But in his case it’s been instant. I spend a lot of time running to the TV watching Jay Bruce highlights. My son always alerts me when he is coming to bat.

“It’s beautiful to watch. He’s taking lefties the other way and pulling righties. His swing is just so sweet. I can’t wait to take my son to watch him play when they come to Houston.”

The Reds, by the way, don’t visit Minute Maid Park until a three-game series July 28-30. They return Aug. 26-28 and Sept. 23-25. The Astros may need to set up a branch ticket office in Beaumont.

Gilligan, meanwhile, says the more he thinks about it the player whose total skills he’d most compare Bruce to is Griffey. Interestingly enough, Griffey is the player Bruce grew up idolizing. And now he’s edged his way into the Griffey media spotlight as the veteran closes in on his 600th home run.

“He even looks like Griffey at the plate,” Gilligan maintains. “About the only difference is Jay is a bigger version. I can remember talking to Cincinnati’s minor league people when Griffey was coming up. They were saying the same things about him they are saying about Jay.

“Bottom line, he has all the tools. On top of that, he’s a great kid who is unusually mature for his age. He won’t let what’s happening go to his head. He’s well grounded. He just has so much going for him, including being able to lean on Griffey for advice. From what I understand, Griffey really likes him.”

Joe Bruce verifies the latter. “Jay’s first game, he and Griffey and Adam Dunn were on the top step of the dugout. Griffey said to Jay and Dunn that they all needed to sprint to the outfield in the top of the first. When he said, ‘Let’s go,’ Jay took off. He got about 30 yards and noticed he was alone.

“Griffey and Dunn were in the dugout laughing that he’d fallen for a rookie prank. They really do love him. They’ve been messing with him since he was in the rookie league. Being with them is a great fit for him. I think they see him as a special player.”

All in all, it sounds like Gilligan’s five-year projection may not be an exaggeration.

Sports editor Bob West can be e-mailed at rdwest@usa.net. His Sportsrap radio show airs Mondays at 7:05 p.m. on KLVI (560-AM).

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