The New York Mets have been trying to get starter Kodai Senga right for a while now, and yesterday he threw a gem.
The New York Mets have always known that a wide range of possibilities come into play when starter Kodai Senga takes the mound.
When he’s on, he’s often dominant or close, baffling hitters with a tough combination of high-90s velocity and what Anthony DiComo of MLB.com called “some of the most lethal pitches in the majors.” If Senga’s not right, though, he becomes an enigma wrapped in a conundrum, a fussy, exasperating pitcher who needs perfect conditions to perform.
The Mets saw the dominant version of Senga in yesterday’s 1-0 loss to the Marlins, as Senga hit 99 mph and threw what DiComo called “seven distinct shapes” in those secondary pitches as he struck out five in a three-inning outing.
Count Mets manager Carlos Mendoza among those who were impressed.
“I haven’t seen Kodai at his best,” said manager Carlos Mendoza, who has only been around for Senga’s past two campaigns. “Last year, he was pretty good, but we didn’t see this type of version here where there’s velo, there’s attack, there’s movement. There’s a lot of positives going on there.”
You’d think there’s no such thing as being too sharp, but Senga’s precision outing fell short of his prescribed pitch count, so he ended up throwing another 30 pitches in the bullpen.
So what was Senga’s explanation for this sudden surge of excellence?
“I’m healthy,” Senga said through an interpreter, “and I think that’s the most important thing.”
It was the pitcher’s health that was behind the deteriorating arc of Senga’s season last year. He had an ERA of just 1.47 through 13 starts, according to DiComo, until a hamstring strain took him off the mound, and his ERA ballooned to 5.90 over his next nine outings. By September, Senga was demoted to the minors, and he never made it back to Citi Field.
All of which raises the reliability question. Senga’s a complicated guy, which was reflected in his comments about offseason adjustments as he spoke of “getting each of [my] body parts back to where it needs to be, connecting my brain and the body parts so that I can move properly.”
Consider Mendoza sold. He said Senga has already done enough to prove he belongs in the rotation, so he’s basically been pencilled in at this point. What the Mets manager wants aligns with what most of us want, which is to be happy and healthy.
“I want him to continue to be the guy that showed up on Day 1 -- smile on his face,” Mendoza said. “He’s just healthy. But as far as what do we need to see? We need to see a guy that is going to go out there and is going to give us a chance to win a baseball game, which, when he’s healthy, he can do that.”