Cramping calf puts Bruce on the bench

ST. LOUIS — Jay Bruce’s troubles over his first month with the Mets have spilled over to the physical side.

The veteran outfielder was absent from Thursday’s starting lineup with discomfort in his right calf, a night after he was removed, for precautionary reasons, because of a cramp.

“The soreness is out of there some, but the tightness is there when I push off,” Bruce said before the Mets’ 10-6 win over the Cardinals.

Bruce hit a foul ball off his shin last weekend in San Francisco and said that might be contributing to his latest ailment.

“I think it’s the swelling that has dispersed into my calf,” he said.

Bruce is 13-for-77 (.169) with two homers and six RBIs since arriving in an Aug. 1 deal that sent Dilson Herrera to the Reds.

Manager Terry Collins said Bruce was available to pinch-hit, but wouldn’t run the bases, on Thursday. Bruce did not play.

➤ Neil Walker is scheduled to rejoin the team Friday after a three-day paternity leave. Wilmer Flores started at second base in Walker’s place on Thursday because of Kelly Johnson’s 1-for-11 (.099) struggles against Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright. Flores went 2-for-4 with three runs and an RBI.

➤ Collins has no answers for Curtis Granderson’s disappointing season. Granderson, who went 1-for-5 batting fifth Thursday, went 5-for-30 (.167) on the road trip. He is 19-for-112 (.170) in the 29 games since July 19.

“I think the only differences are he’s not walking like he was last year,” Collins said. “You put a number of walks in those plate appearances and his average comes up quite a bit. It’s just that this year seems like one of those times where it seems like if he swings the bat he hits the ball instead of fouling something off and getting deeper in counts.”

➤ The Mets won a series for only the second time in the history of Busch Stadium III, which opened in 2006.