Kodai Senga locks down 1st career save for Mets. Could more be ahead?

Has Devin Williams' injury opened a door to a new role for Kodai Senga?

After Williams was placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to Aug. 8, with a right shoulder strain, Senga received the first crack at a save opportunity on Monday night.

Senga faced the heart of the Braves' batting order, striking out both Matt Olson and Michael Harris II before working around a two-out walk with a fly ball to pin down his first career major league save in the Mets' 8-5 victory over the Braves in the series opener at Truist Park in Atlanta.

"Didn't soft serve him," Mets interim manager Andy Green told reporters. "Those were some of the best hitters in the league. Really good stuff. His first two punchouts were sensational, they're really good forkballs to punch those guys out. He was great. Hopefully he feels great tomorrow and he's ready to go again."

The only problem for Senga on a milestone evening? Where was the ball?

Carson Benge appeared to give the ball to a fan in the crowd along the right-field line after making the game-ending catch. Senga threw up his arms and gave a laugh near the mound as Benge trotted in from the outfield.

"I think Benge is trying to tell me that I should have just punched him out," Senga said with a smile through an interpreter after the game.

With Williams out for at least two weeks and a makeshift bullpen in place after the Mets' trade deadline sell-off, there is a wide-open opportunity in high-leverage innings for the Mets. Senga, who struggled mightily in the rotation and is settling into a single-inning, high-leverage role for now, could be one of the beneficiaries of a void in late innings.

For now, Senga is embracing his opportunity to pitch key spots for the Mets.

"I thin k it's a great environment for myself," Senga said. "First of all, my body feels great. I'm able to go out and perform even in short innings, regardless of the situation. Certainly there are things that are difficult or differences that I have to adjust to, but even with that, there's a lot to learn, and again, I think it's a great environment."

The next question might be how Senga, who was used to pitching once every six days as a starter in Japan, is able to adjust to the grind of the bullpen workload.

Senga came out firing on Monday night, touching 99.9 mph with his fastball against Olson out of the gate. After Olson fouled off three straight pitches, Senga buried a forkball to send down the Braves first baseman. He followed up two straight fastballs with a forkball to fan Harris.

Senga said he would like to keep his other pitches available to keep batters off balance, but for now, his high velocity and plunging forkball have shown effectively in short bursts. He has now thrown three straight scoreless innings of relief with four strikeouts.

"It's definitely two sensational pitches," Green said. "He doesn't have a need to expand the arsenal. Third batter there, mixed in a few more pitches, but those are the two that are kind of his bread and butter right now. Obviously was able to plow through two of the best hitters in the league."

With strong returns early, leverage reliever could be a role for the Mets to consider with Senga moving forward. He is owed $14 million for 2027 with a $15 million club option for 2028. The Mets will have plenty of opportunities to see him get settled there down the stretch.

For now, Senga does not want to close any doors on how he can be deployed.

"As soon as I think, 'OK, I'm not a starter anymore. I'm going to be a reliever,' then I think the mental switch makes it very difficult to throw longer innings," Senga said, "so I want to keep that in the back of m mind while still going out and performing, whether it's one inning, one hitter, whatever the situation is."

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Kodai Senga locks down 1st career save for Mets. Could more be ahead?

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