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Sullivan | Reds' Bruce doesn't overthink situation like 0-for-26

Tim Sullivan
@TimSullivan714


CINCINNATI – When Jay Bruce steps toward home plate, he leaves his baggage behind.

The Cincinnati Reds' New Age outfielder strives for instant amnesia, the ability to clear his mind of all of its clutter and to concentrate solely on the next pitch. He survives his slumps by focusing intently on the here-and-now, scrupulously avoiding the what-and-if.

Or so he says.

"Someone said I was 0-for-23 coming into the game," Bruce said Sunday afternoon at Great American Ball Park. "I honestly did not have the slightest clue. I knew I hadn't gotten a hit in the last three or four games, but I don't even keep up with it ...

"For me, there is no there. There's just here."

Bruce's hitless streak had reached 26 at-bats when he stepped into the batter's box in the eighth inning Sunday against the Milwaukee Brewers. But in taking Will Smith's 1-2 pitch from here to there in the right-field stands, Bruce gave the Reds a 4-2 victory over the Central Division leaders and himself a platform to espouse memory-purging as the path to baseball serenity.

"In 2009, when I struggled really for the first time in my life in baseball, I had no idea what to do — no idea," Bruce said. "I was lost. Throughout this year I haven't felt like that one time. I feel in control. I feel in control of my game. I feel in control of my routine. There's ups and downs and I'm determined to just push forward and help the team however I can ...

"If you think about it too much and you try to make up for what you haven't done, it's daunting, man. It really is. And you don't sleep well. It's a hard game, it really is, but I feel if I tell myself to stay focused on being right here right now, it helps a lot."

That the Reds' 2014 season has been pretty forgettable to this point is largely a product of the bad knees and deteriorating production of Bruce and Joey Votto. Three years ago, the two sluggers totaled 61 home runs and drove in 200 runs. Last year, they combined for 54 homers and 182 RBI.

Sunday, six games past the season's midway mark, the Reds' two most accomplished sluggers had contributed just 14 homers and 57 RBI while carrying long-term contracts that appear progressively burdensome for a small-market ballclub.

The Reds stand fourth in their division, six games out of first place, primarily because they lack offensive firepower worthy of their fine pitching. They have too many banjo hitters for their bandbox ballpark and not enough big, brassy bats. If they are to get from here to there – "there" being the playoffs – they're going to need a lot more memorable moments from Bruce and Votto or to make a deal that changes their current dynamic.

"Everybody talks about how early it is," All-Star infielder Todd Frazier said Sunday. "It's really not. We've got to win."

Beating the Brewers two out of three makes the Reds' plight seem slightly less desperate than it did when they limped home from being swept in San Diego. With eight more home games before the All-Star break – five against the Chicago Cubs, three against the Pittsburgh Pirates -- the opportunity to gain ground is at hand.

Yet with Bruce hitting just .228 and Votto visibly laboring with a troublesome quad, the Reds lack the consistent production to expect long winning streaks. After striking out three times in Saturday's 1-0 loss to the Brewers, Votto was given the day off Sunday, sparking speculation that he may be destined for an imminent return to the disabled list. Votto has already missed 25 games this season and has one RBI since June 25.

Prior to Bruce's two-run homer in Sunday's eighth inning the only runs the Reds had scored in the previous 19 innings were two first-inning runs made possible because Bruce beat a relay throw on what might have been an inning-ending double play.

The effort was professional, but nothing extraordinary. That manager Bryan Price saw fit to commend "how hard he runs out of the box on a routine groundout or flyball" might have been read as damnation by faint praise.

For his part, Jay Bruce prefers to react to the moment rather than dwell on his disappointments.

"You guys know very well that this has not been the best year for me," he told reporters Sunday. "But the year's not over and I'm determined to not give in to it.''

To be here, not there.

Tim Sullivan can be reached at (502) 582-4650, by email at tsullivan@courier-journal.com, and on Twitter @TimSullivan714.