Major League Baseball

Jay Bruce feels 'instant recharge to battery' with Mets

Published Aug. 2, 2016 9:43 p.m. ET

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NEW YORK (AP) Jay Bruce brought his two large Cincinnati Reds gear bags into the Mets' clubhouse, walked into a filled interview room and pronounced himself in a New York state of mind.

''There's an instant kind of recharge to the battery, getting in there to a pennant race and playing baseball that matters,'' the All-Star outfielder said Tuesday, a day after the Mets acquired him from the Reds. ''The last couple years have been tough.''

Bruce, who reported to the Mets along with returning pitcher Jon Niese, was drafted by the Reds in 2005. Bruce made his big league debut with Cincinnati in 2008 and reached the postseason in 2010, `12 and `13, but the Reds are one of the National League's worst teams and decided to deal him for infielder Dilson Herrera and left-hander Max Wotell.

Bruce took uniform No. 19 - Joey Votto's number in Cincinnati - started in right field and batted third against the Yankees. He drew a standing ovation and cries of ''Bruuuce!'' before his first plate appearance from fans who sounded as if at a Springsteen concert. His first at-bat was a flyout.

''One of the things obviously we told Jay is, look you're not the savior. You're a big, big piece,'' manager Terry Collins said.

Bruce has spent just one game in center field since 2008, so Collins put him in right and pulled Curtis Granderson - whose locker is in the same corner of the clubhouse as Bruce's - from his starting lineup. Alejandro de Aza was in center and Michael Conforto in left.

With Yoenis Cespedes slowed by a quadriceps injury, Collins said the Cuban slugger will be a designated hitter from Wednesday through Sunday, when the Mets play in AL ballparks at the Yankees and Detroit.

Last year, Cespedes' acquisition at the trade deadline sparked the Mets to their first NL pennant since 2000. Collins practically salivated at the thought of Cespedes and Bruce together in the batting order of New York, which entered with an NL-low .238 batting average.

''Tomorrow night when we get Ces' back in there, I'll tell you what, that's going to be a unique looking lineup with those big bats in the middle,'' the manager said.

Bruce received a welcome call from injured Mets captain David Wright. Bruce remembered striking out on the final pitch last September when the Mets clinched the NL East title with a win at Cincinnati and then celebrated.

''One of the dirtiest pitches I've ever been thrown was by Jeurys Familia,'' he said of the Mets closer.

New York had long considered trying to acquire Bruce.

''I feel like I've been getting traded to the Mets for over a year now,'' he said.

The 29-year-old, a three-time All-Star who leads the NL in RBIs, has a contract that includes a team option for 2017. He's not sure if he wants to live in Manhattan or the suburbs.

''I think New York can be as big and fast as you want it to be. I plan on finding my niche and just being myself,'' he said. ''I'm not going to have a car here, so I'm going to have to use a lot of different modes of transportation.''

Niese also has a housing decision to make. After the Mets traded the 29-year left-hander to Pittsburgh in December for Neil Walker, the second baseman signed a one-year sublease for the pitcher's apartment on Manhattan's Upper East Side.

''Knowing the type of guy Neil is, I highly doubt that he's trashed it,'' Niese said.

Niese will pitch out of the bullpen after going 8-6 with a 4.91 ERA in 18 starts and five relief appearances with the Pirates. He joked that he was a boomerang: ''Throw me out and I come right back again.''

He was asked about a comment he made last fall that appeared to criticize the Mets' defense. He was quoted by Pittsburgh-area reporters as saying: ''I'm sure what I'll appreciate more than anything is the way they play defense. I'm looking forward to that.''

''All I really said was that I was excited to pitch in front of the Pirates' defense,'' Niese said Tuesday. ''It's unfortunate the way it got turned around, because it's certainly not what I meant by it.''

Notes: The Mets recalled infielder Ty Kelly and left-hander Josh Edgin from Las Vegas, and they optioned outfielder Brandon Nimmo and right-hander Seth Lugo to the Triple-A team. Shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera was placed on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to Monday, with a strained patella tendon in his left knee. Outfielder Justin Ruggiano was put on the 15-day DL with a strained left hamstring.

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