Kodai Senga says 2024 season's health woes are behind him: 'I'm not worried at all'

Entering the 2024 season, Kodai Senga was the Mets' ace, fresh off a rookie campaign after coming over from Japan where he had a 2.98 ERA and 1.22 WHIP while striking out a shade under 11 batters per nine innings. He finished second in National League Rookie of the Year voting and seventh in Cy Young voting.

Entering the 2025 season, following a 2024 campaign that was all but wiped out due to shoulder, triceps, and calf injuries, Senga is a bit of a question mark -- at least for now.

In his only regular season appearance last year, Senga was largely dominant, holding the Braves to two runs on two hits while walking one and striking out nine while throwing 73 pitches over 5.1 innings.

Of course, that outing -- and Senga's regular season -- ended during that same game when he injured his calf while going after a grounder.

Senga fought to return for the postseason, but did not look like himself in any of his three appearances.

He gutted through 2.0 innings of one-run ball in Game 1 of the NLDS against the Phillies, striking out three. But he was hit hard by the Dodgers in his lone NLCS start (in Game 1) and only relief appearance (in Game 6), allowing six runs on five hits while walking six and striking out just one. In those two outings, Senga's stuff and command was simply not there.

Speaking on Tuesday after reporting to spring training, Senga said he's felt totally normal since the beginning of January after an offseason that was "kind of like a half rehab, half normal type thing."

Senga, who said he's expecting to have a normal spring training, also discussed the decision to return for the playoffs last year.

"Obviously I felt good. I felt ready to throw at the time," Senga explained. "At the same time, having thrown the entire season and not is pretty different. So this year I expect to be healthy and be pitching a lot of innings so we can go deep into the postseason."

As far as his health, Senga is not concerned.

"I'm not worried at all," he said. "I just need to ramp up slowly and get through spring training healthy, and get through the year healthy."

He added: "This offseason has been really great in terms of evaluating what types of movements I need and don't need, and I've been able to work on that. And I feel really good up to this point, and like I said earlier, just need to ramp up slowly."

With the Mets expected to use a six-man rotation this season, Senga was also asked about what that might mean for his health and preparation. But he explained that he isn't reliant on it, saying that he can throw in any scenario as long as he's healthy.

Surrounding Senga in the rotation will be Sean Manaea, Clay Holmes, David Peterson, and Frankie Montas, with candidates for the sixth starter spot including Griffin Canning, Paul Blackburn, and Tylor Megill.

The Mets also have top prospect Brandon Sproat, who should begin the year in Triple-A Syracuse but could possibly make his big league debut during the first half of the season.

As far as Senga, if he's the 2023 version of himself -- or even close to it -- it would be a game-changer for a rotation that has high upside but might be the Mets' biggest unknown entering a season where they have World Series expectations.