Unique destination for NY Mets trade candidate Kodai Senga feels a little off

Kodai Senga’s potential availability via trade this offseason should have GMs, POBOs, and fans thinking about how much the fallen New York Mets ace is worth. His contract, which guarantees just $15 million in each of the next two seasons, is favorable. Elite to start the 2025 season and the exact opposite to finish it, he has a tough market to judge. You have to have the utmost belief in Senga returning to form to give up anything of value for him. But, if the Mets have given up on fixing him and would like to clear his salary, he’s movable.

Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report came to a unique conclusion that Senga could be bound for MLB’s best team in 2025; the regular season at least. Senga was named as a potential match for the Milwaukee Brewers. Citing Senga as a replacement for Brandon Woodruff, another player who’s good when he’s good but struggles to stay healthy, it’s reasonable.

Or is it? Published on October 17, the fallout shortly after this story went live has the Brewers shopping Freddy Peralta.

Even before the latest rumors, Kodai Senga didn’t feel like a great match for the Brewers

Milwaukee sneakily has a strong rotation of mostly young arms. As Miller projected, they could field a decent five-man rotation with Peralta at the top followed by Jacob Misiorowski, Quinn Priester, and Robert Gasser. The fifth spot would belong to Chad Patrick or Logan Henderson. For what it’s worth, Henderson had a 1.78 ERA in 5 starts this past season.

Adding Senga to this mix is strange considering the state of the Brewers in other places. They’re going to move on from Rhys Hoskins. Although third in runs scored this past year, they ranked 22nd in home runs. A high average, OBP, and stolen bases is what made their offense a force. Unfortunately, it resulted in a disastrous consequence in the NLCS against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Some added [fire]power to the lineup might be the wiser grab than a pitcher like Senga whose abilities have come into question.

There will no doubt be a lot of Mets rumors involving Senga trades this offseason. David Stearns and Carlos Mendoza couldn’t fake enthusiasm for what he was giving them. If he is dealt somewhere, the Brewers don’t feel like the right team for it. If Woodruff and Jose Quintana leave, Senga becomes their second-highest paid player behind only Christian Yelich. They can afford it, but it feels like they have better moves they could make than to take on a player whose abilities came into such great question for months last year.

Hmm. It doesn’t feel like they’re beating the Dodgers with this change.