Kroeger graduated from Scripps Ranch High School in 2000, where he was named to the Third Team All-American.

He became a free agent at the end of the season and signed a minor league contract with the Chicago White Sox.

In 13 minor league seasons, Kroeger hit .276 with 154 home runs and 743 RBI in 1,434 games.

His most productive seasons came in Venezuela, where he was widely known as 'La Pesadilla' (The Nightmare), primarily due to his clutch hitting ability for delivering a game-winning hit or belting a home run against the opposite team, as well as for the phonetic similarity of his surname to the fictional character Freddy Krueger.

Overall, he posted a .297/.401/.482 slash line with 27 homers and 128 RBI in 224 games during his five-season stint in the league.