Jay Bruce Is Pain Free

There was no one incident responsible for the torn meniscus in the left knee of Jay Bruce.

The rightfielder was scratched from the Reds' lineup on Sunday May 4 against Milwaukee.

Bruce had athroscopic surgery on Monday.  Friday afternoon Bruce reported that he has no pain from the surgery.

"I feel great," Bruce said. " This is my second day without crutches.  The pain is completely gone. There is still swelling but there is no pain."

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"It happened gradually.  It has been off and on for a year. It was manageable  before. But it got to the point that is was less manageable.  So I said something. It was hard for me to say something because I take pride in being out there."

It is the just the second time that he has been missing from the team due to injury.  Bruce broke his right wrist on July 12, 2009 and missed two months.  He was leading the team with 18 home runs at the time.

"This week was brutal.  I was on the couch watching on TV.  I hadn't been away from the team since 2009 when I broke my wrist.  I can remember vividly being in a Buffalo Wild Wings in Houston.  It was before you could get games on your phone. I had to go somewhere where they had the package."

He is expected to be back in three more weeks.

"I told Chris Heisey to go out and make me look bad," Bruce said. "I watched every pitch of the two games in Boston. It was two tough losses. That's what hurts the most not being able to contribute.  I have confidence in the guys taking my place."

Some players have said that the game looks easier on TV than it does when they're playing. Bruce adamantly disagrees.

"No way does this game look easy on TV.  After being out there and knowing how hard it is.  It is a very difficult game.  I was watching the NFL draft and realized that these guys that are drafted go directly into the big time.  When you get drafted in baseball you go to where ever it is they send you for three or four years.  This game is hard with all the intricacies."