Hoping to keep their NL East first place position unhinged, this week the Philadelphia Phillies added a new meaning to the term “lost and found” amid some roster turnover.

Although injury appeared somewhat inevitable with the former NL MVP’s age climbing up to 32, outfielder Andrew McCutchen’s injury woes worsened, as he suffered a season–ending ACL tear. While Philly poises to miss McCutchen’s services, a bright spot to combat this bad break appeared almost immediately as the new acquired Jay Bruce crushed two home runs including a grand slam just days after Cutch’s injury, leading the Phillies to a 9–6 win over the San Diego Padres and illustrating how the effective Philadelphia front office continues to improve their roster.

Not too long ago, the Phillies roster appeared inked with question marks across the entire diamond, as their young an unproven players held the Phillies as an inconsistent team with a cloudy future. Although recent off–field issues concerning Odubel Herrera illustrate work that still need doing, change commenced this offseason with winning the Bryce Harper sweepstakes, as the once unproven Phillies now stand as a true NL power, thanks to a front office that makes strategic effective moves such as adding Bruce. Harper currently resides as Philadelphia’s crowned jewel with his marketable name, home run threatening power, and effective glove. Yet, the other moves that Philly’s front office orchestrates prove equally as effective.

Standing in at shortstop, newly acquired Jean Seguara highlights the league as a true steal for the Phillies with his .285 batting average and 23 RBIs thus far. Even with Segura’s production aside, the trade which sent Carlos Santana packing allowed potential All–Star Rhys Hoskins to shift back to first base, a more comfortable position where Hoskins now posts a top ten NL fielding percentage, which combines with his 13 home runs at the plate. Adding to the cause stands J.T. Realmuto, yet another addition conducted by the Philadelphia front office. Although not putting up monster numbers, he hits quite effectively with a .273 batting average and remains generally on pace to match last year’s numbers, which earned him a Silver Slugger Award. Realmuto proved his value once again during last night’s contest going 3/5 at the plate.

These expensive and somewhat risky moves are essential to Philadelphia’s success and continually fit in like puzzle pieces, filling jagged and unusual holes perfectly as if made for that exact purpose. The Phillies also await newly-signed relief pitcher David Robertson‘s return from injury, as his effective bullpen pitching poises to assist the Phillies down the stretch. With the always entertaining trade deadline forecasted to strike soon, look for Philadelphia to slide more pieces, improve their team and look to make the playoffs for the first time since 2011.

On Saturday, ESPN ‘s Jeff Passan reported that the Philadelphia Phillies were close to trading for veteran outfielder Jay Bruce from the Seattle Mariners.

Passon reported that “the sides have talked about Bruce, Seattle is willing to deal him and Philadelphia needs a bench bat. No trade agreed to, however.” On Sunday, the deal became finalized.

The Phillies first became interested in acquiring Bruce following the arrest of Phillies outfielder Odubel Herrera on a simple assault charge associated with domestic violence against his girlfriend. After being placed on administrative leave by Major League Baseball, the Phillies found themselves in desperate need for an additional bat — that bat ended up being Bruce.

Bruce, a two-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger, was a first-round draft pick by the Cincinnati Reds. After making his Major League debut in 2008, Bruce played the entirety of his career for the Reds until he was acquired in a trade by the New York Mets in August 2016. The 32-year-old appeared in 47 games this season for the Mariners, his first season playing in Seattle, slashed to a line of .212/.283/.785; well below Bruce’s career average slash line of .246/.317/.785. While Bruce has taken an obvious step backward as a hitter, Bruce’s average exit velocity (90.1 mph) and launch angle (24.0) remain strong. The Phillies also will have to pay Bruce the vast majority of the $14 million that he is owed on his contract this season (they can thank  New York Mets for that contract).

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In return for Bruce, the Mariners have acquired third basemen prospect Jake Scheiner and cash. Scheiner is a 23-year-old, right-handed third baseman from San Mateo, California. For the Clearwater Threshers this season, Scheiner has hit to a slash line of .256/.324/.680 in 45 games with two home runs and 20 runs batted in. Scheiner was a fourth-round draft pick by the Phillies in the 2017 MLB Amateur Draft out of the University of Houston.

A well-known name is making his return to the New York Mets.

Jay Bruce deal with Mets news

Jay Bruce has agreed to a three-year, $39 million contract with the Mets, the team confirmed Wednesday.

Though 30-year-old free agent Bruce primarily played in right field, he also played first base previously with the Mets. The three-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger Award winner spent the first nine seasons of his major league career with the Cincinnati Reds before being traded to the Mets in August 2016.

He compiled a .245/.313/.482 split line with 37 homers and 94 RBIs in 153 games for the Mets over the 2016-17 seasons. In August 2017, Bruce was traded to the Cleveland Indians for Minor League pitcher Ryder Ryan. 

With the Mets and Indians in 2017, Bruce batted .254/.324/.508 with a career-best 36 home runs and 101 RBIs through 146 games.

Bruce also played in the American League Division Series for the Indians against the Yankees in October, hitting .278 with a pair of home runs and four RBIs.

Should Bruce play in right field and Yoenis Cespedes in left, Michael Conforto would then likely slide over to center, where he started 39 games last season.

Per Statcast, Bruce also finished 2017 with a whopping 40.3 percent hard-hit rate and an average fly-ball distance of 332 feet. The veteran slugger thus finished with the highest homer total (36) and the second-best RBI mark (101) of his ten-year career.

Nevertheless, ESPN’s David Schoenfield states that the Mets should go beyond just signing Bruce and add a second baseman or third baseman. Among those rumored to fill these positions are Todd Frazier and Mike Moustakas for third and Neil Walker for second.

Schoenfield also noted that the Mets will need to improve in run prevention, as they were second-to-last in the National League in runs allowed after posting a dismal 5.01 ERA. This, along with a handful of major injuries like Noah Syndergaard, led the Mets to finish the season with a 70-92 record for fourth in the NL East.

The Mets’ defense was also the worst in MLB via Defensive Runs Saved with minus-70 runs.

CLEVELAND, OH – AUGUST 24: Jay Bruce #32 of the Cleveland Indians hits a solo home run during the sixth inning against the Boston Red Sox at Progressive Field on August 24, 2017 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)

Cleveland Indians outfielder Jay Bruce made a pledge on Wednesday to match up to $100,000 in donations made towards relief efforts for his hometown of Beaumont, Texas, which, like neighboring Houston, has been ravaged by Hurricane Harvey this past week.

With the help of the Indians, Bruce set up a donation page on the baseball team’s website and promised that he and his wife, Hannah Bruce, whom is also from Beaumont, will match every donation up to $100,000.

“Hannah and I have teamed up with the Indians in an effort to support the community that has supported me my whole life,” Bruce began a message on Twitter.

“Beaumont, TX means everything to me and we feel like this is the least we can do to help in such a tough time for everyone. With your help, we can make a huge difference for hundreds of thousands of people affected by Harvey.”

“We look forwards to helping make our community whole again, and with the help of so many great people behind us, it’ll be that much easier,” said Bruce.

The website will be active through September 10.

Bruce, who was just recently traded to Cleveland by the New York Mets, spoke to reporters before Wednesday’s game against the Yankees about his hometown.

““It’s a fairly large city in terms of population, but it feels like a small town. It’s middle-class, blue-collar, hard-working people that I feel like kind of made me who I am. It’s people that care for each other, full Southern hospitality — that’s obviously showing with the rescue efforts going on down there — and most of all, it’s home. It’s home. That’s why it’s so important to me.”

Bruce also mentioned that while his home and the homes of his family members haven’t been damaged beyond repair, he knows of many friends who’s homes have.

Hurricane Harvey – now considered a tropical storm – stalled over East Texas and Louisiana last weekend, bringing with it an historic amount of rainfall and flooding. As of Wednesday, 38 deaths have been reported as a result of the Harvey, according to The New York Times.