Kodai Senga injury update, what it means for ace, rotation

NEW YORK — Kodai Senga’s final stat line for the 2024 season is likely to feature only one game.

Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said Saturday that an MRI on Senga’s left calf revealed a high-grade strain. He is expected to miss the remainder of the 2024 regular season.

“The way I see it is, we’ve been through a lot and if we get to see him pitch again this year, that means we’re in a good spot,” Mendoza said. “Hopefully that’s the case. We’ve only got two months, so yeah, it’s hard for him.

“We’re feeling it for him because he’s been through a lot the whole year. He goes out there and has a game like that and then for him to go down that way, sucks. You just got to keep going.”

Senga was 16 outs into his 2024 season debut when he crumbled to the infield grass after pushing off his left leg on a pop-up to the left of the mound. The injury ended Senga’s electric start at 73 pitches. He retired the final 10 batters he faced, struck out nine batters and allowed two earned runs on two hits and one walk.

The 31-year-old right-hander was making his first start of the season after spending five months working back from a right shoulder capsule strain and nerve inflammation in his triceps. Now, his future is uncertain for the remainder of the 2024 campaign. Mendoza did not rule out the possibility of Senga being available if the Mets make the playoffs.

“It’s hard to put a timetable here, especially we’re talking about a calf. Those are tricky,” Mendoza said. “We could be looking at eight, 10 weeks before he’s a big league pitcher, 85 pitches. It’s hard to predict what we’re dealing with, but it’s a high grade.”

For now, Tylor Megill will fill in the Mets’ rotation, which has lost Senga and Christian Scott (UCL strain) to injuries in the last week. Mendoza said the Mets will now work with a five-man rotation.

The injury comes at an interesting time for the Mets, who have won five straight games to improve to 55-48 and leap into the top wild card spot in the National League. The front office now has a potential opportunity to bolster the starting rotation before Tuesday’s trade deadline.

“We feel good with what we got,” Mendoza said. “I trust David and the whole group there. I know they’re gonna do what’s best for this team, not only for this year but for the future. I like what we got. I feel good with what we have, not only in this room but down in the farm.”

The Mets’ training staff, Senga and the coaching staff will now put together an approach to keep Senga away from the mound as little as possible while trying to keep his arm in shape.

“We’ll put together a game plan here with him to make sure that we’re not putting anything at risk and he’s not compensating any of the other parts, in this case, whether it’s the shoulder, the elbow or anything,” Mendoza said. “We’ve got to sit down and put together something here with him.”