Mets' mound desires: Dedniel Nunez for stretch, Kodai Senga for postseason
Dedniel Nunez of the Mets reacts after defeating the Rockies at Citi Field on July 13. Credit: Jim McIsaac
The Mets hope Dedniel Nunez can help them during their playoff push, and they’d love to see Kodai Senga be a factor if they get there.
Nunez, who’s been out for nearly a month with a forearm strain, threw live batting practice at Citi Field on Friday. If all goes well, he could be ready for a rehab assignment with Triple-A Syracuse on Tuesday, Carlos Mendoza said.
President of baseball operations David Stearns wouldn’t completely rule out Senga returning for October baseball, though it is too early to tell.
Senga, who strained his left calf in his first start back from the injured list three weeks ago, has kept his arm active but hasn’t been able to use his lower body to push through and power his pitching motion. The Mets will have a better idea of his timeline when he begins engaging his whole body — something they hope might happen within a week to 10 days.
“He’s still going through the initial stages of the recovery,” Stearns said. “Because it’s a lower-body injury, he’s able to keep his arm going, but we haven’t done any upright throwing yet. We’re still kind of in immobilized throwing. I can’t answer the question of the likelihood that he’d be ready to go in October. I think we really need to get him upright and throwing and see how his arm responds and then we’ll get a little bit better of an understanding of where he is.”
Nunez threw 20 pitches during batting practice, utilizing his entire arsenal. The 28-year-old rookie has been a revelation out of the bullpen, pitching to a 2.43 ERA in 24 appearances and recording a team-best 5.63 strikeout-to-walk ratio (omitting Senga, who has pitched only 5 1⁄3 innings this year).
“I feel 100% healthy and I’m excited about it,” Nunez said. “I’m just really focused right now on trying to get healthy and help the team any way that I possibly can.”
Marte return imminent
Starling Marte (knee) had another rehab appearance with Triple-A Syracuse on Friday and could rejoin the team as soon as Sunday, Mendoza said. Marte, who hasn’t played since June 22, will join an outfield rotation that includes Brandon Nimmo, Harrison Bader, Tyrone Taylor and Jesse Winker.
“When he’s on, he can play against righties and lefties,” Mendoza said. “We’re going to need him . . . I’ll mix and match. There will be a rotation there. Guys will need days off and we’ll go from there.”
Laura Albanese is a reporter, feature writer and columnist covering local professional sports teams; she began at Newsday in 2007 as an intern.
