Logan Kreske hasn’t received much playing time in his two seasons at Wichita State. Still, every chance he has, he picks the brains of his coaches and tries to contribute to the baseball team in any way possible.
“My opportunity is kind of been here, there, and so just trying to support my teammates,” Kreske said. “And, I mean, all of that stuff is out of my control. What I can control is my attitude and how I support everybody else. And I think that’s more important.”
Despite his lack of appearances, Kreske, a senior catcher, has shown a lot of improvement in Wichita and has been a model member of WSU’s team. In what will likely be his final season of NCAA baseball, Kreske’s work ethic hasn’t gone unnoticed.
“Obviously, he’s a great kid, great human being,” WSU catching coach Clay Overcash said. “But just … became very astute to what we were doing, and wanted to work and get after it.”
Extra work
Kreske spent his freshman year riding the bench as a medical redshirt at McLennan Community College in Texas.
The team won the National Junior College Athletic Association Championship that season. But Kreske, desiring more playing time, left to play at Coastal Alabama Community College for two seasons.
After that second year, Kreske received a phone call from an unlikely source: Anthony Miller, the new hitting coach at WSU who had coached Kreske at McLennan. Despite his lack of playing time in his freshman year, Kreske had made enough of an impression on Miller that the coach offered him a roster spot for the Shockers.
“I came here, and I loved it, and it was the best offer I had by far and an opportunity to work with some really good coaches,” Kreske said. “And coach Miller, obviously, who I adore.”
Once he arrived at WSU, Kreske chose to take the initiative to improve as much as he could from coaches like Miller and Overcash.
Overcash said when Kreske arrived at Wichita State, he was a little raw as a player. However, the extra practice Kreske puts in has made a difference.
“He continues, you know, daily, no matter how the seasons go on or how much he’s played,” Overcash said. “He’s still wanting to get work in, which I respect that a lot, you know, as a coach.”
Overcash said Kreske takes every opportunity to get better. For example, he often catches bullpens from Wichita State pitchers, something many catchers treat lackadaisically. Not Kreske.
“Making that a part of your fiber makes it easier in the games, you know, because you are going to catch a heck of a lot more pitches in the bullpen than in the games on a traditional day,” Overcash said. “And plus, you know, in Logan’s situation, he’s coming off the bench or spot starting here and there. It keeps him sharp and ready to go.”
Kreske also stands out for his desire to know “why” and not just “what.” Overcash described Kreske as “precise” and a “student of the game.”
“He’s very inquisitive about the game,” Overcash said. “He even likes to know why I potentially like one catcher for another team better than another, you know, and that’s just who he is.”
While his appearances are still limited, Kreske’s work ethic has translated into on-field results. After going 0-4 at the plate last year in just three games played, Kreske has started five games this year and earned five hits on a .313 batting average. WSU is 3-2 in games Kreske has started.
However, Kreske said he thinks more about his process than his results.
“I think the feel of my swing and the feel of my catching is way more important,” Kreske said. “And I think that feel outlasts results in longevity-wise. So I think that, you know, I felt good during the things that I’ve done, and so I can feel good about the results that have happened so far.”
Overcash said Kreske’s improvement has been noticeable across the board.
“I think everybody would probably agree with that from the coaching staff, that he’s made great leaps and bounds and jumps in his progress,” Overcash said. “And I think he’s done an outstanding job, but that’s a tribute to the work ethic he’s put in.”
Positive impact
Kreske knows his largest contributions to the team won’t come on the field, but he still tries to make a positive impact off of it. It’s a lesson he learned while redshirting at McLennan.
“I would like to say that a lot of my teammates enjoyed having me around because I was a positive presence and just enjoyed being around everybody,” Kreske said. “And I think that knowing your role kind of helps you fill situations and have a more positive impact on the team.
“And so, I mean, it was the same thing for me last year, too. Which was, you know, kind of accepting my role and being like, ‘Okay, I’m not going to get a lot of opportunity here.’ And so doing what I got with what I had, and while also trying to make sure that I support everybody else fully.”
Overcash said Kreske is sometimes affected by the lack of playing time — as anyone would be. But he doesn’t let it impact his mindset.
“He’s a great teammate,” Overcash said. “Always does what you ask, makes adjustments that you ask him to make. And as long as he does those things, you know, he’s going to be successful.”
Kreske said he has a “firm foundation” of important things in his life outside of baseball: he’s religious, and has a good group of friends and hobbies. Those aspects of his life allow him to remain patient and positive.
“I have a very easy time taking it step by step or a day at a time,” Kreske said. “I wouldn’t say it’s easy all the time, and a lot of prayer and patience comes with that. But I think that, you know, self-belief and perseverance gets you a long ways. And I think that’s kind of been the story of my career, just continuing to believe in myself and have faith in God’s plan.”
Going forward, Kreske said he may want to play baseball outside the NCAA, begin a baseball business or a coaching career of some kind.
He wants his legacy at WSU to be about who he was as a person rather than just as a baseball player. Kreske remembers that during his freshman year at McLennan, his older teammates cared about him personally more than they did his performance on the field. That has stuck with him throughout his collegiate career.
“Everybody here is playing baseball, but not everybody here is going to play baseball forever,” Kreske said. “And so having an impact more on the individual person versus the baseball player is so much more important, because they’re going to carry that life aspect with them so much further than they will with the baseball.
“So I think that that was way more important for me to, like, pour into people’s lives, versus trying to teach them, you know, how to swing at a curveball.”
Kreske probably could have received more playing time at a smaller school than Wichita State. Still, he’ll carry positive memories of his time here.
“I knew that I could have an impact, a positive impact at that,” Kreske said. “And it was more about the relationships that I had among the coaching staff and a lot of my teammates that I really enjoyed that made me want to stay here … I definitely made the right choice, and I love where I’m at.”
