The Mets have asked Kodai Senga to refine his pitching mechanics in Triple-A while also focusing on building Jonah Tong’s confidence.
Senga will make another start with Syracuse, according to manager Carlos Mendoza. Senga had a solid outing, needing only 74 pitches over six innings, allowing just one run on three hits, with no walks and eight strikeouts.
Despite some injury issues with other Mets pitchers, the former ace has faced ongoing mechanical problems that led to his demotion. They won’t be able to add him to the active roster until next Saturday, anyway.
Still, Mendoza described the initial step in Senga’s comeback as “very good.”
“The key was he threw strikes and attacked the zone,” Mendoza mentioned before the 3-2 loss to the Rangers at Citi Field. “Almost every pitch was effective.”
Unfortunately, it was a different story for Tong, who struggled, yielding six runs while getting only two outs in Friday’s game. The 22-year-old was visibly impacted and seemed shocked by the performance.
Mendoza shared that he had spoken with Tong both after the game and on Saturday morning, emphasizing that he wasn’t alone in feeling down.
“The entire team backed him up,” Mendoza responded after the disappointing result.
“What I wanted him to see was all the veterans supporting him. It was a hard night for him.”
As for Tong’s future, it remains uncertain. Mendoza indicated that Tong is “in the rotation for now,” which was also his response when discussing Sean Mania’s status last week.
The Mets have a day off on Monday and plan to discuss the possibility of a six-man rotation, where some starting pitchers may share duties.
In other news, before the alumni classic event, Carlos Beltrán reflected on the missed opportunities from 2006 while sitting with former teammates Jose Reyes and Carlos Delgado.
“We didn’t make it to the World Series,” Beltrán said. “That’s well-known.”
The conversation lightened a bit as Reyes joked about the memory, asking, “What happened?”
Beltrán recalled the moment he struck out against Adam Wainwright’s curveball, which ended hopes for the Mets that year.
Pete Alonso has been making waves lately, scoring a hit in his first five at-bats during his eighth multi-hit game since August 26th, boasting an impressive slash line of .316/.346/.539 during this time.
Furthermore, the Mets have announced plans to wear uniform patches in honor of Davy Johnson throughout the season.
