Kodai Senga has struggled since returning from a month-long hamstring IL stint, producing a 5.40 ERA over his last eight starts and a 6.10 ERA excluding his first scoreless outing. He has completed five innings only three times, often reaching 80-85 pitches by the fourth inning due to an inability to put hitters away. Many pitches have been non-competitive or easily identifiable as bad offerings. Forty percent of his 1,827 pitches missed outside or below the zone, with 212 classified as waste pitches by Baseball Savant. Senga's approach relies on batters chasing his ghost forkball, but consistent quality in the zone has diminished.
Kodai Senga's struggles have risen to the forefront of an inconsistent Mets rotation. What was initially believed to be an acclimation period that came with ramping back up to speed following a month-long absence with a hamstring injury has become a steady regression. In his last eight starts since returning from the IL, the Mets' ace has a 5.40 ERA. Take out his first start back, where he went four scoreless innings, and it swells to 6.10.
A lot of non-competitive pitches when you're getting behind hitters, it's going to be hard, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said, attempting to diagnose Senga's issues. You look up and it's 80 pitches, 85 pitches in the fourth inning. It's a struggle for him right now. We got to get him going because we need him. Senga's M.O. always toes a thin line. He lives outside the zone, relying on batters to chase his elusive stuff, particularly his ghost forkball.
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