2 min read • February 24, 2024
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New York Mets starting pitcher Kodai Senga was diagnosed with a mild strain of the posterior capsule in his right shoulder, likely sending him to the injured list to start the season.
With the setback coming at the beginning of spring training, the Japanese righty is likely to be sidelined until at least early May.
The team has said he will resume pitching when the symptoms subside, but the key to his return will be finding out what caused the arm fatigue and posterior capsule strain he showed up to camp with.
Senga, through his translator, said bad mechanics were to blame.
“I think it’s just a mechanical issue,” he told reporters. “I was supposed to throw a certain way and I wasn’t able to mimic that motion. Simple.”
There wasn’t a specific moment when the injury occurred, but Senga and the team decided to shut him down when his arm failed to recover quickly after he threw bullpen sessions and side sessions at the start of spring training.
Senga has been working on a new pitch in spring training, but said he hasn’t thrown in at game-level intensity yet and felt it was “irrelevant” to the shoulder injury.
"At this point, I'm not gonna be able to perform at the highest level so giving it a little bit of time is the right move,” Senga said through his translator.
The 31-year-old Mets starter went 12-7 last season with a 2.98 ERA and 202 strikeouts in 166.1 innings pitched.
With Senga likely sideline for a good portion of the beginning of the season, the Mets will likely turn to lefties Joey Lucchesi or David Peterson to fill his spot in the rotation.
The Mets will also be looking for solid performances from new signees Sean Manaea, Luis Severino and Adrian Houser, who all joined the rotation out of free agency.
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