I’ve seen a lot of phenoms come through Louisville. A phenom, short for “phenomenal,” is a can’t-miss big-league prospect. You know the type. A player so gifted at a young age that he leads fans and sports writers to believe they’re seeing the next Willie Mays or Mickey Mantle or Sandy Koufax.

Back in the 1950s, when the Louisville Colonels were the Class AAA farm team of the Boston Red Sox, we got to see precocious stars  like Frankie Baumann, Gene Stephens, and Harry Agganis play for the home team in Parkway Field. Some made it, most didn’t, but it was great fun to speculate.

At the time Indianapolis was the top farm team of the Cleveland Indians. They had three young prospects that stick out in memory – Rocky Colavito, Roger Maris, and Herb Score. We knew they were good. But who could have guessed that Maris would break Babe Ruth’s single-season home run record?

Score’s career ended tragically. He might have become the best left-handed pitcher of his era had he not been hit in the eye by a line drive off the bat of the Yankees’ Gil McDougald. He was never the same.

When A. Ray Smith brought the Springfield Redbirds to Louisville in 1982, ending a 10-year span where we were without professional baseball, the timing couldn’t have been better as far as phenoms were concerned. We got to see exciting youngsters such as Willie McGee, Vince Coleman, Andy Van Slyke, Todd Worrell, and Todd Zeile before they went on to major-league stardom.

Which brings me to the case of Jay Bruce.

I admit that I’ve often been fooled by phenoms. A few years ago, I thought Brandon Larson would be the answer to the Reds’ problems at third base. (He didn’t come close.) I never thought that Adam Dunn would become the Reds’ all-time leading left-handed home-run hitter (although he’ll never replace Ted Kluszewski in my heart).

And I’m still wondering whatever happened to Chris Denorfia (traded to Oakland in 2007, currently on DL) and whether he’ll ever make it. As I watched him play for the Louisville Bats, I thought he was a sure thing, but it seems that injuries have either thrown his career off course or ruined it.

But I’m sure that Bruce is the real deal. Of all the fine prospects I’ve seen come through Louisville over the last 50 years, he just might be the best. And Joey Votto, who this year nailed down the Reds’ starting job at first base, isn’t far behind.

Only 21, Bruce has all the tools. When he takes his left-handed batting stance, you immediately think of Ken Griffey Jr. He has the same fluid swing. He can hit for average and with power to all fields. He also has the speed to beat out infield hits and stretch singles into doubles.

Defensively, he’s excellent. He’s a natural centerfielder who can cover a lot of ground. But when he’s put into right, he has an arm that – dare I say it? – brings to mind the young Roberto Clemente, the best rightfielder I’ve ever seen.

But here’s something just as important as the physical tools: He has the right attitude and personality. Bruce will be a leader in the clubhouse, but never a problem. He handles interviews with the aplomb of a seasoned veteran.

In other words, he’s the exact opposite of Homer Bailey, his counterpart in the pitching department.

I recently heard Marty Brennaman and Jeff Brantley discussing Bailey in not-so-flattering terms. They said he had a bad attitude. They talked about how he blew off a reporter from Dayton who had come to Louisville to see how he was doing with the Bats. They said he seemed to be bitter that he wasn’t in Cincinnati instead of working hard to prove he deserved to be there.

Last season the Reds were so desperate for pitching that they probably called up Bailey too soon. He enjoyed a modicum of success, but nothing along the lines of what Johnny Cueto and Edinson Volquez are doing this season. Yet apparently Bailey felt he had done enough to be entitled to a spot on the big-league roster.

Of course, Bruce, rated the top minor-league prospect in all of baseball, also had the right to feel that way when he came to spring training. The Reds had cleared out the centerfield spot for him by trading Josh Hamilton to Texas in exchange for Volquez and others. But when the Reds sent both Bruce and Bailey to Louisville, Bruce shrugged and went to work while Bailey sulked and fumed.

Each got what he deserved. Bruce tore up the International League and earned his Tuesday call-up; Bailey has overpitched or overthought or oversomethinged and been far less effective than he was last season in Louisville. At the moment, he seems pointed more toward Chattanooga than Cincinnati.

Bruce’s debut against the Pirates was the stuff of dreams. Playing at home before a crowd that already was hailing him as “Bruce Almighty” or “The Natural,” he went three-for-three, walked twice, and stole a base. In every respect, he looked ready to be the Reds’ centerfielder for years to come.

The last time I can remember a centerfielder generating so much excitement in Cincinnati was when Vada Pinson came along in 1958. He, too, had all the tools. In fact, he had so much potential that even though he had a more-than-respectable big-league career – he led the National League, at one time or another, in hits, runs, and doubles – he could have done more.

Willie Mays and Mickey Mantle, the iconic centerfielders of the last half of the 20th century, both were very young when they came to the big leagues. They faced the pressure of great expectations and thrived magnificently. Still, there were slumps and doubts and rough times. It’s not easy, being a phenom.

I’m not ready to put Bruce in their class. But I am ready to tell you that he’s going to be one fine big-league player. I believe he has the maturity and attitude to weather the inevitable tough times. I also believe that he’s fortunate to be coming along at a time when he can learn from Griffey, who will no doubt protect him and help him cope with the pressure.

I’ve seen all or part of 10 Bats games this season, mainly because I wanted to see as much of Bruce as I could before the Reds called him up. He became one of the hottest stories in baseball, and yet, oddly, the local media didn’t give him nearly as much attention as, oh, an eighth-grade UK basketball recruit from California. At least Courier-Journal columnist Eric Crawford, bless his heart, had the good sense to go to Cincinnati Tuesday to cover Bruce’s big-league debut.

Although Bruce is gone, perhaps never to return, the Bats have other prospects worth watching. I’ve been high on left-handed pitcher Matt Maloney since he was called up to Louisville at the end of last season. Former Yankee Andy Phillips may be the league’s best hitter now than Bruce is gone. Catcher Ryan Hanigan guns down would-be base stealers with startling regularity.

Shortstop Paul Janish, called up by the Reds when Jeff Keppinger was injured, may return to Louisville when either Keppinger or Alex Gonzalez gets healthy. But Janish also is the real deal. When he was called up to the Bats last season, his fielding prowess was obvious, his hitting a question. But this season, first with the Bats and now with the Reds, Janish is quickly shedding the dreaded “good field, no hit” tag.

I hope we don’t see Bruce again in Louisville, unless the Reds play an exhibition game at Slugger Field. I hope he’s a phenom who pans out big-time. It’s always great, when you’re a minor-league fan, to be able to say, “Yeah, I knew he was going to make it the first time I laid eyes on him back in…”