 He worked in only 44 innings for Detroit, and was briefly sent to Triple-A Denver.On December 1, 1961, he was traded to the Houston Colt .45s, a first-year expansion team, for veteran pitcher Sam "Toothpick" Jones.Bruce became a mainstay of the Houston starting rotation during the team's early years, tying Turk Farrell for the team lead in wins (with ten) in the Colt .45's inaugural 1962 season, and becoming the first Houston pitcher to win 15 games, in .