Kodai Senga out of the Mets' bullpen at end of the regular season? It could happen
Mets starting pitcher Kodai Senga walks to the dugout after the top of the fifth inning of an MLB game against Atlanta at Citi Field on July 26. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
Can you imagine this: It’s the eighth inning of a tight game in the last week of the season. The bullpen door swings open and Kodai Senga emerges.
It could happen.
Senga, who is on the injured list with a left calf strain suffered in his only start of the season, said on Monday that he hopes to make this Mets dream a reality.
“I think I can get off the IL list with about [four] games left in the season, give or take a few games,” Senga said through an interpreter. “I think what I can do is try to get back on that date or as soon, as close to that date, as possible, and that’s what I’m working toward.”
Senga is eligible to return from the IL on Sept. 26, when the Mets will be in Atlanta for the final game of a three-game series. The regular season then will end with three games in Milwaukee.
Of course, if Senga is healthy enough to pitch in the final four games, he’ll also be available for a potential Mets postseason. The Mets now sit a half-game behind Atlanta for the final NL wild-card spot after Monday’s 4-1 win over the Red Sox.
Senga said the Mets’ place in the standings “definitely plays a part. Where we are in the standings, I know that the last couple of games are going to be really important, and because it’s going to be important, I need to be at 100% to get back, to contribute to the team.”
Senga missed nearly four months at the start of the season because of shoulder issues. He came back on July 26 with a dominant 5 1⁄3-inning, nine-strikeout performance against Atlanta but left the game after injuring his calf while trying to race away from an infield pop-up.
At the time, Senga thought he was done for the regular season. As a starter, he probably is.
“Given where we are in the season, realistically, am I going to be able to throw five, six innings as a starter? Probably not,” Senga said. “Whether they use me as a starter or in the bullpen, that’s up to them. I just want to be ready to throw as many innings as possible. Whatever the team needs me to do, if it’s out of the bullpen, I’m open to anything. Again, I just want to throw as many innings as possible for the team. I just need to get to that point and be able to throw at 100% and contribute to the team.”
The Mets’ ace in his rookie season of 2023, Senga could be quite a weapon out of the bullpen with his wipeout splitter. Manager Carlos Mendoza already is fantasizing about the possibility.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if we use him in any type of role,” Mendoza said, “whether it’s pitching [once] every two games. Who knows? Hopefully we’re having those conversations.”
Getting to contribute in any way later this month would put a Band-Aid on what has been a rough season for Senga.
“The word that most accurately describes the season is it’s been tough,” he said. “It’s been a tough season. It has been disappointing to not be out there.”
J.D. out, DJ in
J.D. Martinez was placed on the paternity list Monday and the Mets called up DJ Stewart from Triple-A Syracuse. Stewart went 1-for-3 and was replaced as the leftfielder by Harrison Bader in the seventh inning.
Nunez update
Reliever Dedniel Nunez, who is on the IL with right forearm tightness, is in a holding pattern, Mendoza said.
“I don’t think he’s scheduled to throw or start playing catch [during] this [six-game] homestead, but we will revisit,” Mendoza said. “We want to put our hands on him the next six days or so, and then we’ll see where we are toward the end of the homestand.”
Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.
