Inside The Pinstripes

Royals Take a Chance on Former Yankees Reliever

Kansas City signed ex-Yankees reliever Brooks Kriske to a minor league deal this week.

Max Goodman

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Brooks Kriske will always be remembered by Yankees fans as the right-hander that produced one of the wildest innings in baseball history.

The reliever threw four wild pitches in the 10th inning at Fenway Park back in July of 2021 to blow a game against the Red Sox, the first time in MLB history that a pitcher has thrown four-plus wild pitches in an extra inning.

New York ended up designating Kriske for assignment later that year. He had a brief big-league stint with the Orioles, but hasn't pitched in the Majors since, spending the 2022 season over in Japan. 

This week, Kriske took one step closer to a return to MLB, signing a minor league deal with the Royals. The right-hander was subsequently assigned to the Triple-A Omaha Storm Chasers, according to the MiLB transactions page. 

Kriske, 28, was drafted by the Yankees in the sixth round in 2016 out of the University of Southern California. He made his MLB debut during the pandemic-shortened season in 2020, posting a 15.09 ERA over 12 total appearances in a Yankees uniform. He had a 12.27 ERA over four outings with Baltimore in 2022.

Those numbers are certainly an eyesore, but Kriske has some potential to put it together, producing consistent success in the minor leagues. Over four minor league campaigns, Kriske owns a 2.34 ERA. He had a 3.25 ERA over 32 total appearances in Japan this year. 

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Max Goodman
MAX GOODMAN

Max Goodman covers the New York Yankees for Sports Illustrated and FanNation. Goodman has been on the Yankees beat for three seasons. He is also the publisher of Sports Illustrated and FanNation's Jets site, Jets Country. Before starting Inside The Pinstripes, Goodman attended Northwestern University and the Medill School of Journalism. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism and Master’s Degree in Sports Media, graduating in 2019. At school, Goodman was an anchor and reporter with NNN SportsNight and played on the club baseball team. While at Northwestern, Goodman interned with MLB.com as an associate reporter covering the Miami Marlins. He also interned with ESPN, working as an associate reporter on Mike Greenberg's Get Up. Goodman is from New York City. He grew up in Hell's Kitchen. Follow Goodman on Twitter @MaxTGoodman. You can connect with him via email by reaching out at maxgoodmansports@gmail.com.

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