The New York Mets have continued their 2022 MLB offseason starting pitching signings with the agreement to sign Japanese right-handed starter Kodai Senga to a five-year deal worth a reported $75 million. The deal, which includes an opt-out option for Senga after the 2025 season, is pending a physical. Earlier in this offseason, the Mets signed both Justin Verlander to an $86.6 million two-year deal and Jose Quintana to a two-year, $26 million deal. With Max Scherzer and Carlos Carrasco already set in the rotation, they are quickly piecing together the best rotation in baseball. Add to that list Tylor Megill, Elieser Hernandez, and Joey Lucchesi as possible fifth-starter options for the Mets. And this is all after losing Jacob deGrom to free agency.
Across 11 seasons with Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball organization, Senga pitched to a 2.59 ERA. He posted a 1.115 WHIP with 10.3 K/9, 3.4 BB/9. He allowed 6.6 H/9 in 1,089 innings of work. His walk rate is a bit high compared to top pitchers in MLB but his hit rate is a bit low. So the two combine to make his WHIP more competitive with high-level pitchers in the league. Senga also has had a sub-one WHIP three times in his career. They all came prior to Senga turning 23 years of age, and 2023 will mark his age-30 season. Two of the seasons of sub-one WHIP also came with less than 59 innings pitched.
This is not to say that Senga will not be a great MLB pitcher. However, he is probably not seen as an ace of an MLB staff yet – certainly not of the current Mets rotation. One may expect Senga to be the number three or number four starter on the Mets rotation in the beginning.
What Mets Should Expect From Kodai Senga
The Mets have some expectations when they go out, and sign a guy like Kodai Senga. They lost one of the best pitchers in MLB, Jacob deGrom, to free agency. They signed Verlander and Quintana, who go a long way toward replacing him. Senga brings a 101 MPH fastball to the table with a devastating splitter and forkball. If he can control those pitches, he ought to translate into a good pitcher in MLB from Japan. If he can maintain command enough to bring his BB/9 to or under 3 while keeping control of his H/9, he will be a dominant pitcher in MLB.
In other words, if Senga comes to the United States with good command, the Mets should be an unstoppable force in the NL East. If Senga comes to the United States with only decent command, the Mets ought to have one of the best, if not the best starting rotation in MLB.
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Kodai Senga, Justin Verlander, Jose Quintana, Max Scherzer, Tylor Megill, Joey Lucchesi, Elieser Hernandez, Jacob deGrom
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