Senga’s Latest Start Takes Mets’ Rotation to New Heights

The Mets’ starting rotation had a collective 2.43 ERA heading into Sunday’s game against the Athletics, so it’s tough to criticize the quality of their performance. However, with no starter having thrown a pitch in the seventh inning yet this year, the quantity was lacking. Thankfully, Kodai Senga was able to supply both for New York.

Senga threw seven shutout innings in the Mets’ win on just 79 pitches. His four-seam fastball was up in velocity, averaging 95.9 mph. For reference, he averaged 94.1 mph in his April 7 start against Miami and 94.5 mph in his first start of the season.

He saved his best pitch for last, throwing a game-high 97.6 mph four-seamer that struck out Gio Urshela to end the seventh inning and Senga’s outing.

Senga only had four strikeouts, instead getting the A’s out with soft contact throughout the game. He induced seven ground ball outs and currently has a 62.5% ground ball percentage this season (91st percentile). He threw his patented “ghost fork” 18 times, inducing a 60 percent whiff rate. But it was his fastball-cutter mix, in addition to a handful of sinkers, that led to his efficient outing.

“He attacked, threw strikes, I think he filled the zone with all of his pitches,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said after the game, “(The A’s) were aggressive at times, got some quick outs, and that’s why he was able to go seven innings today.”

With just 79 pitches, coming off two outings of 77 pitches thrown each time, Mendoza contemplated sending Senga back out for the 8th inning but opted against it.

“I thought about it, but we’ve been keeping him at five innings the whole time,” Mendoza said, “We were looking at 85 pitches, and after that long inning… I thought that was enough for him.”

The Mets are in a stretch of 13 games in 13 days, so while they’ve been able to get by using five starters so far this season, they will likely add a sixth before Senga’s next outing against St. Louis. Hopefully, for New York, that mystery sixth starter will continue this good stretch of pitching.

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