Kodai Senga offers perspective on post-injury struggles for Mets

After a trying season, Kodai Senga offered some perspective on how his outlook for the 2025 Mets changed after his hamstring injury.

Aug 25, 2025; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets pitcher Kodai Senga (34) delivers a pitch against the Philadelphia Phillies during the first inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images | Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

The clear turning point in the New York Mets' disappointing 2025 season was June 13th, which came one day after a critical injury to right-hander Kodai Senga. The Mets were getting All-Star level performance from Senga, who was 7-3 with a 1.47 ERA before hurting his hamstring stretching to catch a wayward throw to first base from Pete Alonso.

Kodai Senga is coming out of the game with the trainer after appearing to injure himself completing a putout at first pic.twitter.com/b1NPkEJAqM

— SNY (@SNYtv) June 12, 2025

Although the injury caused Senga to miss just shy of a month, he was clearly not the same pitcher upon returning from his rehab assignment. Senga routinely struggled to get deep into games, reaching the five inning plateau just three times in nine starts while entering the sixth just once, watching his ERA more than double to 3.02 by posting marks of 5.25 in July and 6.18 in August.

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The Mets reached a breaking point with Senga at the end of August, skipping his first start in September before asking him to accept a minor league assignment to Triple-A Syracuse. Senga's stint with Syracuse delivered mixed results and a recent bullpen session was deemed "just okay" by manager Carlos Mendoza, throwing cold water on any potential contributions from the 32-year-old if the Mets reached the postseason.

Kodai Senga's live BP session yesterday in Florida went "just okay," per Carlos Mendoza. His velocity was down, in the 93 mph range. There was also some concern that the hot weather was fatiguing him. It remains difficult to see the Mets counting on Senga again this season.

— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) September 24, 2025

The Mets did have Senga join the team in Miami over the weekend and he was slated to fly with them to Los Angeles if they had reached the Wild Card Series. Senga met with the media after the game and shared that he feels his body has "changed" after the hamstring injury, noting he will spend the offseason working to rebuild himself from the ground up.

Kodai Senga:

"I want to rebuild from step one. My body has changed after this injury and after various things."

pic.twitter.com/4HFo7jrhHY

— SleeperMets (@SleeperMets) September 28, 2025

Kodai Senga Situation Presents A Unique Challenge For The Mets

There was some thought after Senga's lost 2024 season that the Mets caught a break by being able to have the right-hander for the duration of his five-year contract. The deal that former GM Billy Eppler signed Senga to contained an opt-out after three seasons if he was able to pitch 400 innings in that time frame, which he likely would have obtained if he hadn't made just one regular season start a year ago.

While an arm injury and calf injury slowed Senga's 2024 season, it did showcase how particular he is with his mechanics, as Senga did not feel comfortable with the state of his pitching form during his prolonged rehab process. There were some concerns that Senga's hamstring injury would cost him considerable time due to his mechanics, but Senga vowed to get back to the field faster.

While Senga was available, which helped the Mets, his poor performance raised questions about whether he had compromised his mechanics to compensate for his hamstring issue. It is clear that Senga feels the way he returned was different, which leads him to feel a need to rebuild his mechanics from the ground up this winter.

That statement is far from ideal, as the Mets have to find a way to get more length out of their starting rotation next season to avoid a similar fate as this year. The organization has spent the past few years catering their rotation strategy around Senga, giving him an extra day of rest whenever possible and inserting a sixth starter during long stretches without an off day; these strategies are hard to justify if Senga isn't showing the dominant 2023 form that earned him down-ballot Cy Young votes and runner-up status for Rookie of the Year.

The fact Senga has had two lost seasons in a row means he has essentially no trade value, so the Mets will likely bring him to camp with the expectation that he will be in their rotation until proven otherwise. While most assumed Senga would be the Mets' ace this season, they have to proceed as if any contributions he provides are a bonus and plan to fortify the top of their rotation with a proven commodity in 2026.