CHICAGO (AP) — New York Mets right-hander Kodai Senga is expected to throw live batting practice on Sunday, continuing his comeback from a capsule strain in his pitching shoulder.
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said Senga will throw about 20 pitches to hitters at the team’s facility in Florida. The team will make a decision on the next step for Senga after that session.
“I think, at this point, it’s try to get through tomorrow, see how he comes back afterward, how he bounces back, and then we’ll make a decision whether he needs another live BP,” Mendoza said. “We’ll listen to him, but again, I think it’s just one step at a time.”
Senga finalized a $75 million, five-year contract with New York in December 2022. He went 12-7 with a 2.98 ERA in 29 starts last year, making the NL All-Star team and finishing second in balloting for NL Rookie of the Year.
The 31-year-old Senga got hurt during spring training. He threw live BP on April 29 and May 4, but he said his mechanics didn’t feel right. He also had his throwing program disrupted by triceps tightness and nerve inflammation in his elbow.
He threw a bullpen session on Wednesday.
The Mets lost another pitcher on Saturday when they placed right-hander Sean Reid-Foley on the 15-day injured list with a right shoulder impingement. Left-hander Danny Young was recalled from Triple-A Syracuse.
Reid-Foley is 1-2 with a 1.66 ERA in 23 relief appearances this season. He surrendered Wyatt Langford’s tying RBI single in the sixth inning of Wednesday night’s 5-3 loss at Texas.
“The last outing in Texas, it took him a while to get going,” Mendoza said before New York’s game at the Chicago Cubs. “After a couple of hitters, (pitching coach Jeremy Hefner) made a mound visit and he expressed that.”
Mendoza said Reid-Foley will have an MRI on Monday.
“As of right now, he doesn’t seem to be too concerned. Same thing with the trainers,” Mendoza said. “But again, you’re sending a pitcher to get an MRI, we just got to wait.”
Young, 30, is 2-0 with a 1.00 ERA in nine appearances with the Mets this year. He gives Mendoza a second lefty in his bullpen, joining Jake Diekman.
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