The Reds announced this morning that they’ve signed right-hander Brooks Kriske to a minor league deal. His contract contains an invitation to big league camp in spring training.
Kriske, 29, has appeared in parts of three Major League seasons, logging time with the Yankees, Orioles and Royals. He’s been tagged for 27 runs in a tiny sample of 21 2/3 innings, although he posted better results in a brief look with Kansas City last year when he held opponents to three runs on three hits and four walks with six punchouts in 6 2/3 frames. Kriske averages a bit better than 95 mph on his four-seamer, pairing that offering with a splitter and slider that sat at 84.4 mph and 82.2 mph, respectively, in his short time with the Royals.
While Kriske’s track record in the big leagues is obviously quite limited, he sports a career 2.91 ERA with a 33.8% strikeout rate and 10.9% walk rate in six minor league seasons. He’s also parts of two seasons in Japan, pitching to a combined 2.31 ERA in 35 innings between the Seibu Lions and Yokohama BayStars.
Walks and home runs have been issues for Kriske throughout his time in the big leagues. The latter of those two deficiencies is a particularly tough fit with the Reds’ homer-happy environs in Cincinnati, but Kriske throws relatively hard, gets decent spin on his heater and can miss bats in droves. On a no-risk minor league deal, he’s a fine flyer for a Reds club whose bullpen is lacking in established relievers beyond its top few names (Alexis Diaz, Emilio Pagan, Lucas Sims, Sam Moll, Tejay Antone).
Unclemike1526
The Big signings keep coming in League Wide. Keep em coming.
vaderzim
I blame Yamamoto’s indecisiveness for the lack of activity.
acoss13
Yamamoto is certainly enjoying the wine and dine process of being so coveted by big market teams.
Wire to wire 2024
I don’t get what’s so hard about it.. if winning is most important choose a team poised to win, if money is important choose the biggest offer. Ffs
acoss13
I agree, that’s why I’m just like, just pick the Dodgers already so we can get this free agency going. Not a Dodgers fan, but that’s my bet where he’s going.
just_thinkin
He’s an annoying 25 year old. We all were at one point I guess.
mlb fan
Free agents are looking for both the highest offer AND a winning situation.
vaderzim
This will at least lead to more activity in January and February than normal, but at this rate, I’m convinced a lot of free agents aren’t going to sign until the week before Opening Day.
CardsFan57
He’s waiting for all the final offers to roll in. I don’t expect him to decide until the last minute on Jan. 4. This is what is holding up the market. Other signings and trades will likely start rolling in quickly once he signs.
vaderzim
Wise move by him to get the best contract. I hope his ERA is above 4.35 next year.
DarkSide830
There’s, what, 6-7 teams in on him? Why are the rest of the teams doing nothing.
Canuckleball
Because the other free agents don’t want to sign until the Yamo losers are available to bid on them.
I’m sure the other teams would like to do business, but they’d have to overpay to get a guy to sign now, before the teams in on Yamo are able to move on.
CardsFan57
The rest are worried about the future of media revenues. They will be bargain shopping once the big markets have settled.
MLB Top 100 Commenter
He earned the right to do it his way.
Dotnet22
Hot Stove is running on fumes.
Cknyc
this just in: the plane to toronto with supposedly ohtani on it, has not landed yet.
This one belongs to the Reds
It’s in a 10 year holding pattern.
mlb fan
Most years it’s Boras & Co holding up the free agent market and the only real difference this year is the slow downs are coming from Japan. Let’s not act as though this doesn’t happen every other year.
acoss13
I mean, if I remember correctly Harper didn’t sign until March of 2019, so yes Boras clients drag this out extensively.
just_thinkin
Teams be going minor league signing crazy right now. They know nothing is happening until after the new year, so they’re just taking care of the depth stuff.
I don’t care what the MLBTR writers continue to say in the live chats – this offseason is objectively more boring and slower than most other recent offseasons.
Larry Brown's crank
this guy needs to be flipping burgers!
TrumboRedux
Brooks was here….So was Red.
This one belongs to the Reds
Amazing Po Boy keeps signing relievers with control problems and expect them to succeed in that ballpark.
acoss13
At least your guy, Po Boy as you call him very hilarious nickname by the way, signed Jeimer Candelario, someone the Cubs could have used at 3B. Don’t get me started on the other guy on the Southside with the White Sox, he got the GM job after a pitiful tenure as head of player development…
RedLegJason
We didn’t need Candy Man either. So at least we wasted money on another INF instead of going after an OF or SP.
Marto'sReds
Not until a sophomore slump occurs, or a rash of injuries, will people like you understand the value of Candy Man.
Bobcastelliniscat
If Marte, Elly, McLain and CES each lose a limb this winter, Candelario will still be a .240 hitter.
Marto'sReds
Right, I’ll listen to someone who thinks Bieber at age 28 is past his prime. LBNOL.
We get it. You don’t like Candy!
RedLegJason
They probably will have a slump because they won’t be getting regular at bats now!
cguy
You mean relief pitchers previously released or designated by other teams, such as Buck Farmer, Derek Law, Daniel Duarte, Alex Young, Ian Gibaut,and Fernando Cruz? I believe all of them had some degree of ML success last season. Glad that Nick Krall actually had some expectation that they could compete at the top level, aren’t you?
cguy
BTW ,that’s a combined 5.3 WAR in 2023 as per ESPN stats.
cguy
Covering a total of 357.0 innings With only Farmer (4.91) and Cruz (4.20) having an ERA above 4.00. Heck, as far as you know Krtiske could be “fireman of the year” material by the time DJ and his staff get done with him.
This one belongs to the Reds
They also blew a lot of leads. Gibaut especially, but Bell kept putting him in tie games anyway. A lot of it as a group probably had to do with a burned out bullpen by July due to Po Boy’s failure to get adequate starting pitching, but those were the results nonetheless.
You also conveniently forgot such pitching notables as Mills, Kennedy, Leguima, Salazar, Herget, Cessa, Spiers, Wong, Kuhnel, Richardson, Stoudt, Mariot, Wynne, Karcher, and Bracho, most who would not have sniffed the big leagues without Po Boy’s famous dumpster diving.
cguy
Quality addition to the Louisville Bats bullpen. In case Reds relief corp has a rash of injures, can give the Reds some needed depth.
Bobcastelliniscat
If this guy ever pitches in Cincinnati, it will mean the Pirates have finally escaped the basement of the NL Central.
cguy
Could have said the same thing about Fernando Cruz 2 years ago. Let’s see if DJ can make any headway with this guy.
Old York
Interesting how the guy has performed so well in the minors with a 2.91 ERA and a predictive kwERA of 2.64, however, he just lost all control in the majors.
Maybe NPB/Minors is the best place for him.
StudWinfield
As a Yankee fan he’ll be forever remembered as one of the players they choose to protect over Whitlock. Smh
Troy Percival's iPad
It hurts us Sox fans as much as it hurts you that one of Blooms Big Brain Moves was to insist that Whitlock is a starter, which gave back (and then some) the value he provided out of the ‘pen. Hopefully Breslow doesn’t project his own wishes as a pitcher onto Whitlock and Breslow sends him back to the ‘pen
Ubaldo Jimenez
“besides its top few names” – proceeds to list 5/8 of the pen
This one belongs to the Reds
None of which outside Diaz and maybe Antone when healthy, you would trust to shut down opponents on a regular basis at the end of a game.
Cknyc
for the yankees, this dude gave up 4 homers in bottom of the 9th….at fenway park.
i wished him banned to another country.
i guess cincy will do.
MLB Top 100 Commenter
Leonard: Because deep down, Barry, you’re a really good guy.
Barry Kripke: But am I?
619MetroFriars
Matt Carpenter to replace Votto at 1B/DH?
Tiger22matt
We need another non hitting reclamation project?
Who else
It’s a Dear Bob signing, only a buck 99.