Cleveland Indians: Jay Bruce shines in his first start

The Cleveland Indians bounced back with a big win Friday in a game that saw Jay Bruce have a great first start with his new team.

The Cleveland Indians only scored runs in one inning Friday night, but a five-spot will usually do the trick. It also helps when Carlos Carrasco flirts with a no-hitter.

The 5-0 win helps the Indians keep a 3.5 game lead over the surging Minnesota Twins, and the win also marked Jay Bruce‘s first start with the team.

He had an at-bat Thursday night in which he hit a flyball out, surely causing some armchair managers to announce the trade to be a complete and total disaster.

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Alas, Bruce picked up two hits in Friday’s game and came around to score once. This surely caused the same armchair managers to hold a press conference announcing their initial opinion to be wrong. If only everyone were so rational.

The Indians took on Bruce’s salary so he could be an everyday player with both Lonnie Chisenhall and Michael Brantley out, and fans should expect to see him out there often even if both starters return soon.

Bruce being placed in the fifth spot in the order shows that Francona trusts the new slugger to be a key piece in this lineup.

Regardless of anyone else’s opinion on the subject, Francona is a big fan of the idea of lineup protection, which is why he put Jose Ramirez in the fifth spot behind Edwin Encarnacion for most of the season.

Now that Bruce is here, he can fulfill Francona’s role of protector behind Encarnacion likely until the end of the season.

Some fans made a point to question Bruce’s role once Brantley and Chisenhall return, but the team still has to win games until then. It always amazes me how there is negativity toward something that is clearly a positive. Having too much talent on a team is a great problem to have, especially when so many players are dealing with injuries.

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Bruce may just be a rental player, but expect him to have more nights like the one he had on Friday over the remainder of the season.