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94 IllustrateD volume 24, issue 5 f b a s e b a l l f e a t u r e : b r a n d o n k r i e g BY KYLE CHARTERS KCharters@GoldandBlack.com P otentially deadly on the base paths, Brandon Krieg had but one problem. He couldn't get on base. The junior shortstop struggled to start the season — he had started slowly the year before too, then hit .227 in 42 starts in the middle infield — with an av- erage of only .079 (3 of 39) through Purdue's first 11 games this season. But Krieg's seen a resurgence, hitting .351 from mid-March to mid-April, raising his average to as high as .273. As the calendar neared May, he was batting at .252. "When he gets on base, he can run, he can steal, he can score from second, he can go first to third," Coach Doug Schreiber said. "He brings a different element when he can get on base. He's not your prototypical leadoff guy, in the sense that his on-base (percentage) isn't where it needs to be. But he is that igniter, he's got that excitement about him because of that speed element." Krieg, who is tied for Purdue's high with nine steals this season, had experienced slumps before. After being inserted as the leadoff man to start the 2013 season, he was off early, forcing Schreiber to push him back down in the order. But while ugly then, Krieg feels his struggles last season, his first as a near full-time starter, were beneficial. "I think that slump that I went through last year helped me," the Indianapolis native said. "Because you just have to figure out how to get reset and get back to playing the way you know how to play. I learned from last year and it's defi- nitely helped me. I don't think I'll ever go through something like that again." That's Purdue's hope, too. Krieg's been better lately in part because of his patience at the plate. Early in the season, the 6-foot-1, 195-pounder was chasing pitches early in the count, causing him frequently go down with little fight. But that's changed now. Krieg's going deeper into counts, and as of late April, he had walked 10 times with 151 at-bats, not quite an ideal rate for a lead-off man, but improving. It's helped him feel more comfortable at the plate. "It's all confidence," he said. "I maybe didn't have it as much early in the year just because results weren't there, but I still felt good then. It just makes it a lot easier when hits are falling because it gives you a little more confidence." Krieg's tried to keep his routine the same, coming in to get extra work in the cage, something he can now do more regularly because a wrist injury is healed — he'd strained a ligament over time due to sliding into bases head first. "You couldn't tell whether he's hitting .100 or .500," team- mate Jack Picchiotti said, "because he works hard every day and really does the same thing. From being his roommate, I know how often he goes in and how often he works. "If he's doing bad, he still gets in there, and I know it can be discouraging if things are going bad, you might not want to go in and hit (extra). Then, even when things are going well, you might be like 'I don't need to get an extra round of (batting practice),' but he does it no matter what his stats are." And no matter the offensive stats, Krieg can still be a weapon. He's been excellent defensively, playing now full- time at shortstop after last season being primarily a second baseman, where he made 35 of his 42 starts. Defense was a priority of his growing up in Indianapo- lis, where he played at Lawrence Central High School. As a youth, his dad, Barry, who with his wife Brenda are 1988 Purdue graduates, would take him out on the field to rifle ground balls at him. The 'igniTer' Shortstop trying to jump start Purdue offense Purdue Brandon Krieg has gotten through a couple slumps during his career to become a solid threat at the top of the order.