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Senga gave up two runs on three hits over 2.2 innings during Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Cardinals. He struck out two without walking a batter.
The two runs came on solo shots, one by top prospect Joshua Baez, but Senga was consistently topping 97 mph with his fastball and hit 98.9 mph on a four-seamer to Alec Burleson. That's a huge improvement on 2025, when he averaged just 94.7 mph with the pitch. The 33-year-old right-hander credited some mechanical tweaks for the improved velocity, per Chuck King of MLB.com. "My body is different from where it was three years ago now, so I'm not really trying to get back to that," Senga said after Saturday's start. "It's a new me, and I'm trying to find new mechanics." If Senga's new-found life on his fastball holds into the regular season, he could return to the level of performance he showed in his first MLB season in 2023, when he posted a 2.98 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 202:77 K:BB in 166.1 innings.
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Mets' Kodai Senga: Reaches 97 mph in live BP
Rotowire
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said Thursday that Senga hit 97 mph in a live batting practice session Thursday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.
Senga averaged 95.7 mph with his four-seamer in his rookie season and 94.7 mph with the pitch in 2025, so topping out at 97 mph already in camp seems like a good sign. The 33-year-old posted a 3.02 ERA in 22 outings for the Mets last season, but his strikeout rate dipped to 22.6 percent and he finished the year in the minors after a rough stretch. If healthy, Senga should open 2026 in the Mets' rotation.
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Mets' Kodai Senga: Looking good early in camp
Rotowire
Senga appears to be further ahead of other Mets pitchers in camp and has already been hitting 92 mph with his fastball, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.
Having Senga healthy and effective would be a huge boost to the rotation, but the 33-year-old right-hander has a lot to prove in 2026. He began last season with a brilliant 1.47 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 70:31 K:BB through his first 13 starts and 73.2 innings, but after landing on the IL due to a hamstring injury in mid-June, Senga couldn't put things back together. He posted a 5.90 ERA, 1.69 WHIP and 39:24 K:BB over his final nine outings and 39.2 innings after being activated from the IL before spending September trying to correct his mechanics at Triple-A Syracuse even with the Mets trying to make a playoff push. If Senga can rediscover his early 2025 form, or his form from 2023, he would give New York a true top-of-the-rotation presence alongside Freddy Peralta.
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