Brooks Kriske Radiates Consistency, Reliability in 2024

Brooks Kriske has been one of the best and most reliable arms out of the Louisville Bats bullpen thus far in 2024. The righty is 5-0 with a 3.24 ERA in 41.2 innings across 35 appearances to date, utilizing a staggering pitch that some call a splitter, some call a forkball, and most importantly, hitters just call trouble.

Leaning on that treacherous pitch, he leads the Bats in wins and is tied for the lead in holds (10) while also sitting tied for first in the International League in the latter category.

“I’d say my success comes from really refining what I’ve done well in the past, getting another year older, and understanding myself more,” Kriske said. “It’s simple and I’m having fun.”

The righty has impressed when coming in with runners already on base, as he has allowed just two of 26 inherited runners to score this season. Although Kriske wasn’t cognizant of those numbers, he’s always pitching to the situation he’s thrown into.

“I think it’s just knowing the situation. Sometimes you have to pitch to a strikeout, and I believe that’s a strength of mine,” Kriske said. “Maybe occasionally when I start my own innings, instead of being super aggressive and trying to get a strikeout, I’m more focused on conservatively getting the first out, so it’s just a bit of a mental switch. I wasn’t aware of those numbers, so that is something that would probably be helpful when I start my own innings.”

Bats manager Pat Kelly is more than happy to always have the California native as an option out of his bullpen.

“It’s so nice to know that if your guy gets in a jam, you can call a guy like him in,” Kelly said. “With that forkball, he’s either going to get a ground ball or a strikeout so as a manager, it makes it so much easier and actually makes me look smart.”

Kriske made his Major League debut with the New York Yankees in 2020, the organization that drafted him in the sixth round of the 2016 MLB Draft, which is a dream that he wasn’t sure would ever come to fruition.

“I’ve told a lot of people that I never thought it would happen. I grew up in a smaller city in California, not necessarily a baseball hotbed, and I didn’t know anyone who had played in the Major Leagues,” Kriske said. “I just wanted to make my high school team. Then, when college became a reality, it was like ‘Okay, cool, college is paid for,’ and every year since then it’s just expanded, so I’ve been very blessed.”

After spending time with the Yankees and the Baltimore Orioles, Kriske pursued international opportunities in 2022 and 2023 with the Yokohama DeNA BayStars and the Saitama Seibu Lions of Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan, and had a short stint with the Kansas City Royals in between.

“It was an awesome experience. I joke and tell people that’s the only thing that makes me interesting is that I lived in Japan,” the righty said. “Different types of hitters over there, and I faced a lot of left-handed hitters which was a weak point of mine before going there. I used it as a time to get better and also meet a lot of new people and have new experiences.”

This past offseason, Kriske decided it was time to return to a Major League organization and signed a minor league contract with the Cincinnati Reds on December 21, 2023. He cited a few connections and the birth of his daughter, Kinsley, as to why the timing was right.

“My daughter was being born in January, so we thought being in the States close to family would help with the baby,” Kriske said. “And with the Reds, I knew Connor Overton and met Alan Busenitz last year and I’ve always heard good stuff about the organization, so it felt like the right fit.”

With 2024 being his first full season as a father, the birth of Kinsley has certainly changed his perspective and drive as he attempts to make it back to the big leagues.

“It’s been such a blessing,” Kriske said. “Just being able to wake up next to her, it just takes the stress off of baseball. Absolutely nothing beats it.”

Speaking of things that take the stress off, the reliever was added to the Reds 40-man roster on June 17 and has seemingly gone up a level since then, striking out 21 over just 12.0 innings, but he claims the fire is always lit.

“Obviously, you’re always competing for the team up top, and for that matter, the 29 other teams as well,” Kriske said. “Sometimes it feels like a weight lifted off your shoulders when that happens and maybe I’m feeling a little bit more free, but it’s nothing that really stands out to me personally because I’m always competing to be the best I can be.”

If Kriske keeps up his tremendous play out of the bullpen, he could soon find himself in a Major League clubhouse once again.