Kodai Senga says mechanics are reason he paused comeback

Kodai Senga on Monday explained stopping his trip along the comeback road from a strained right shoulder.

Before Monday night’s game against the Phillies at Citi Field, the Mets’ No. 1 starter said he took a break from facing hitters after his second live batting practice session earlier this month because he was experiencing mechanical failure and was fearing trouble down the road with both his results and his health.

“With my current mechanics, I didn’t think I could come back at 100%, so I’m taking a little bit of time to look over everything,” Senga said via an interpreter. “Making sure everything is perfect before I get back into games is the right move for me.”

The Japanese righthander went 12-7 with a 2.98 ERA in his first Mets season last year. He was shut down early in spring training this year after straining a posterior capsule.

The problem lately?

Senga said that “all my power output wasn’t going toward the catcher . . . When that is happening, I’m more susceptible to getting hit and also more susceptible to injuries if that continues . . . I would say the reason why I ended up getting hurt was partially due to mechanics.”

The Mets just rolled with Senga’s desire to take a timeout from the progression steps.

“He’s different,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “He’s a unique athlete and he’s very meticulous with the things that he does. It’s one of those [things where] we’ll be flexible and we’ll have to listen to the player.”

Senga wasn’t tossing out an exact timeline as far as starting a rehab assignment. He threw a 45-pitch bullpen session Sunday and plans on another mound session Wednesday.

“We’ll see how I feel in my next bullpen,” he said. “If all goes well, it could come sooner than later. But it’s really up in the air.”