Kodai Senga struggling to work his way back to Mets

CHICAGO — Donâ€t count on Kodai Senga returning to the Mets any time soon.

Senga, whom the Mets optioned to the Minors earlier this month due to performance issues, struggled in his most recent live batting practice session, according to manager Carlos Mendoza. Of issue was the right-handerâ€s fastball velocity, which lagged around 93 mph.

“Just OK,†was how Mendoza described the session, adding that the hot Florida weather “kind of got to him a little bit and he got tired.â€

“Physically, he feels fine,†Mendoza added. “Heâ€s healthy. But itâ€s just not clicking.â€

That puts the Mets in a difficult spot with Senga, who canâ€t rightly return to active duty until he at least performs well in back-field practice sessions. For now, Senga will remain in Florida, where heâ€ll continue working to rediscover his prime form. But heâ€s running out of time. Mendoza indicated that Senga probably wouldnâ€t be an option to start Sunday against the Marlins, even though that might be a meaningless game.

But if Senga doesnâ€t pitch, the Mets will have a hard time simply adding him blindly to their playoff roster as they did last year for the NL Division Series. The most likely outcome for Senga, in other words, could be heading into the offseason without having thrown another Major League pitch.

Now three seasons into the five-year, $75 million contract he signed prior to 2023, Senga has given the Mets just 118 2/3 innings over the past two of them. The team still owes him $30 million and will be incentivized to get Senga right — whether thatâ€s down the stretch this season or, more likely, at some point next year.

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