Kriske has a brand new cutter and an improved slider too.
Brooks Kriske, despite some really good numbers earlier in his career, was a bit of an afterthought on the prospect scene as he worked his way back from Tommy John surgery. His recovery took a bit longer than even he would have liked but he responded with a huge breakout season this past year and he says it’s only the beginning.
He posted a combined 2.08 ERA between high-A Tampa and Double-A Trenton, striking out a ridiculous 80 batters in 60.2 innings, and allowing a measly .161 batting average along the way.
“I made a lot of changes last offseason and put a lot of work in, and I think it went well,” Kriske said of his 2019 campaign. “I really think it’s just the beginning [too]. Towards the end of the year I started to hammer down on the secondaries [pitches] but for a good part of the year I was just using the fastball. Obviously winning the Eastern League was awesome and I really had a good time with those guys.”
It was a storybook season for sure, one that included winning a Double-A Championship with Trenton. It was quite a reward for somebody who missed all of 2017 and the majority of 2018 rehabbing his way back from Tommy John surgery.
“I had Tommy John in 2016 and I think I lost a lot of my athleticism and strength,” he admitted. “It kind of started with being healthy again and really working on being an athlete again. I hopped on a [strength and conditioning] program, and it kind of made my arm path more efficient, and it kept me really strong and healthy.”
While the surgery was over three years ago, 2019 was his first full healthy season since then and that alone made a world of difference in his performance.
“It was my first full offseason [last year too] where I had the five months of being able to get in the weight room, recover, and hammer down all of that stuff,” he added.
The extra time rehabbing paid off in a big way though. The former sixth round pick out of the University of Southern California was noted back then for his 92-93 mph fastball. That dipped down to the high-80s initially upon his return from the surgery in 2018 and it finally ballooned all the way to the 93-98 mph range in 2019.
While the fastball velocity came back huge, the lost time did leave a bit of a hole with his secondary stuff.
“The slider’s been inconsistent and didn’t really the horsepower behind it that I would like,” he said. “That’s the first thing we worked on with ‘Rosie’ down in Tampa and ‘Norty’ in Trenton. I was struggling with that and with getting lefties out, and Scotty Aldred was at a game and recommended that I try throwing a splitter so obviously I had nothing to lose.
“I tried it and I got a feel for it quickly, and that became my second pitch. I’m still tinkering with the slider but the splitter took over for me. It was a good situation for me in that in felt comfortable to me right off the bat and I was coached by somebody who threw the pitch as well, and he helped me to make some changes.”
He was still throwing the slider but he admits that pitch didn’t begin to click until the very tail end of the season this year, and incorporating more of those and more splitters into his game repertoire is the main focal point as he looks to repeat his breakout season in 2020.
“I’m really working on using my secondaries more often and being able to get it in the strike zone, and expand,” he noted. “Obviously the splitter is more of a chase pitch but it’s good to show that you can throw it for a strike as well. They’re newer pitches for me so I’m just honing in on those trying to get the command down.
“The fastball command and control all feel good. That’s almost always there for me. It’s the secondaries, getting those over, that’s the big key for me. I want to increase my usage of the secondary stuff.”
With the great season he just had, the resurgence of the plus power, and the developing secondary pitches, it’s quite apparent that Kriskie has repositioned himself on the prospect map and is even surging a little bit.
“I try not to put much thought into that. It’s kind of a never-ending process. It’s nice when people are starting to recognize what you’re doing. I felt like I put up good numbers throughout my career but the stuff wasn’t really there.
“It’s nice that I have an opportunity to help out the Yankees in any way because they stuck with me when my stuff wasn’t there and I think a lot of other teams would have gotten rid of me, and they saw the good me and gave me extra time. It’s something they do really well with a lot of guys and it’s something I’m very thankful for. That’s why there’s so much competition, because they keep around guys who do something well and give them an opportunity to develop [more].”
Now not only Double-A tested but proven, the next logical opportunity to help out the Yankees is in Triple-A and everyone knows the Bronx is not far behind that either, and Kriske believes he is ready to help contribute.
“I think I’ve believed that for a long time,” he said confidently. “I trust the Yankees and when they feel I’m ready – they’ve been doing this a long time – when they feel I’m ready, I’ll be ready. They stuck with me for a long time and I’d like to get up there and help them out, and almost thank them for all of the opportunities they’ve given me.”
With a renewed plus fastball, a surging splitter, and perhaps the best slider he’s had to date, Kriske can’t help but feel he’s almost a different pitcher on the mound these days. He’s at least a whole lot better than he was before his Tommy John surgery three years ago and he says he can be a whole lot better going forward too.
“A ton. They make it a point to really help us understand the analytics side [of the game] too. They sit down and explain things to us, and it makes the process a whole lot easier. They develop a plan of attack for us. There’s a lot of guessing taken out of it so it comes down to execution. We don’t have to worry about a lot of externals because we have such a great support system helping us out.
“It comes down to consistency. I had some rough outings and even outings where they were scoreless but I wasn’t executing like I should. Execution is a huge part of it. Watching the World Series, the stuff the guys have isn’t any different than guys in Double-A or Triple-A, it’s just their ability to consistently execute.
“I have the stuff to get big league hitters out, it’s just whether or not I can consistently execute. I feel like the fastball is there but the secondary stuff – if you have bad outings you have to bounce back and I still haven’t had back to back outings yet so that’s another area I have to prove I can do. That’s a lot of what the offseason is for, to get my body ready for 162-games plus,” he concluded.