Former Minnesota Twins, Chicago Cubs journeyman reliever Brooks Kriske signs minor league deal with Athletics
The Athletics signed righty reliever Brooks Kriske to a minor league deal earlier this month, according to MLB.com's transaction log.
The Twins claimed Kriske, 31, off waivers from the Cubs in early August before outrighting him to Triple-A St. Paul in early September. In 12 appearances with the Twins, Kriske surrendered 15 earned runs on 18 hits and ten walks over 12 innings. He only had a big-league opportunity with the Twins because of the trade deadline fire sale, which saw relievers Jhoan Durán, Griffin Jax, Louis Varland, Danny Coulombe and Brock Stewart get traded to other teams. He was successful in his short stint with the Cubs, pitching six scoreless innings with four strikeouts in four outings.
While Kriske, who mostly relies on a mid-90s fastball and low-80s splitter, struggled significantly at the big league level last season, he struck out more than 34% of opposing hitters in 26 games at the Triple-A level during the 2025 campaign.
The New York Yankees selected Kriske in the sixth round of the 2016 MLB Draft. He made his MLB debut in 2020 with New York, allowing six earned runs on three hits and seven walks with eight strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings across four outings. He had a 14.29 ERA in 11 1/3 innings over 12 appearances with the Yankees in 2021 before being designated for assignment in September of that year, leading to him being claimed by the Baltimore Orioles. He had just four outings with Baltimore, surrendering five earned runs on five hits and no walks across 3 2/3 innings.
In the 2021-22 offseason, the Orioles released Kriske. He spent the 2022 season in Japan, then signed a minor league deal with the Kansas City Royals in the 2022-23 offseason. He allowed three earned runs on three hits and four walks with six strikeouts across 6 2/3 innings with the Royals in 2023. He spent the 2024 season in the Cincinnati Reds and Baltimore Orioles organizations, and didn't reach the majors again until he pitched for the Cubs this past season.