RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 1 sourcesIt's been 13 days since Kodai Senga last took the mound for the Mets , but what the right-hander did Friday night against the Marlins was commendable considering what was against him.
Not only was Senga, who has been used out of the bullpen of late, down for two weeks, but he found out he was starting just hours before the 7:10 p.m. first pitch. The Mets scratched Freddy Peralta from his originally scheduled start as negotiations heated up ahead of the trade deadline.
It actually worked out for Senga, as he pitched four scoreless innings before running out of gas in the fifth of the Mets' 5-2 loss to the Marlins . He allowed three earned runs -- two coming after he was pulled -- on two hits and two walks while striking out four.
"He was phenomenal today for a guy who hasn’t been out there for 13-14 days. You can’t ask for anything more," interim manager Andy Green said after the game. "That was an impressive four innings. If I’m handling that right, that’s the end of his night and he feels really good about himself."
"To be honest, there was some fear - I hope it's gonna go okay," Senga said of his outing after being down for so long via an interpreter. "Despite that, I was able to go out there, not be too tense or anything, and go out there and pitch."
The first four innings from Friday's start had shades of Senga's monstrous rookie season. He leaned on the fastball that topped out at 98 mph, filled up the strikezone and trusted his signature forkball. But in the fifth, he walked the first two batters he faced with a wild pitch mixed in there, before Green came out to talk with Senga.
Green said Senga wanted to keep going and even Senga's teammates encouraged him.
"It was his game, he was pitching extremely well," Francisco Lindor said. "And knowing Andy, he's going to make the pitchers go as far as they can. I just wanted Senga to stay in the game mentally as well."
Unfortunately, Senga could not get out of the jam. Jakob Marsee drove in a run with a double, chasing Senga.
"Thought I still have a job to do on the mound," Senga said of wanting to stay in. "Hope to strive to be a pitcher that can finish off those types of innings."
"Baseball’s cruel sometimes. He should be celebrated today for what he did for us," Green said. "But when you leave with three earned runs, the line doesn’t show what you did for your team. He was great."
Senga's outing was encouraging for the Mets. Perhaps it can kickstart a resurgence for the right-hander who has been relegated to the bullpen.
The trade deadline will likely see some openings in the Mets rotation; Peralta and potentially Clay Holmes may not be on the team after Aug. 3, and Senga may be asked to start more often than not to finish up the 2026 season. Green didn't go as far as to say Senga will start again, but the Mets skipper believes Senga will be seen plenty down the stretch.
"He’s going to get an opportunity to pitch meaningful innings for us," Green said. "What he did today was show the guy we’ve known is still in there. That was really impressive after 13 days off.
"All that I'm able to do and can do is go out and perform," Senga said. "Hopefully, today becomes kind of a trigger to performing well in the future, but that's all I can do. That's what I'm focused on."
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