Kodai Senga reached his pitch limit before completing the third inning on Tuesday, but he held opposing pitchers scoreless for the second straight game since beginning his minor league rehab program.
Making his Triple-A Syracuse debut, the right-hander pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, allowing just two hits and walking two while striking out three. Senga left the game after throwing 52 pitches, though he was originally scheduled to throw 50.
Senga also allowed no runs in his minor league rehab debut last week for High-A Brooklyn, throwing 2 2/3 innings and 35 pitches.
Before the Mets played the Nationals at Citi Field, president of baseball operations David Stearns said the Mets hadn’t decided how many rehab appearances Senga would make, but that he was expected to return sometime after the All-Star break.
Manager Carlos Mendoza recently suggested Senga could return to the Mets after throwing 75-80 pitches in a rehab appearance.
Senga is working to recover from a shoulder strain that was diagnosed early in spring training.
Stearns said he expects Joey Lucchesi to clear waivers and remain with the team.
The left-handed pitcher was designated for assignment to make way for relief pitcher Phil Mutton, who was acquired in a trade with the Rays for a player or cash to be announced at a later date.
Lucchesi started 15 games for Syracuse this season and posted a 4.20 ERA.
He made one start for the Mets, allowing five runs in 4 2/3 innings, and had a 2.89 ERA in nine appearances for the Mets last season.
“Joey has pitched well in this organization before, especially last year,” Stearns said. “Obviously, we’re hopeful we can keep him, but we’ll see what happens.”
According to Stearns, it’s unlikely that Ronny Mauricio will play for the Mets this season.
The infielder underwent surgery last winter to repair a torn ACL, and at the time Mauricio was not expected to return until September at the earliest.
However, Stearns doesn’t expect Mauricio to return until next season.
The Mets held a moment of silence and aired a video tribute to team photographer Mark Levine, who died last week.
Levine served in the position for 35 years and photographed more than 2,000 Mets players during that time, according to the team.
