Old Kodai Senga quote about the Phillies lineup should have Mets fans jacked up

Kodai Senga wanted the Phillies. He's going to get them.

Philadelphia Phillies v New York Mets
Philadelphia Phillies v New York Mets / Elsa/GettyImages

Kodai Senga went from one of the best New York Mets free agent signings to one with an asterisk next to it. An incredible rookie year in 2023 followed up by a nearly completely absent one in 2024 has him teetering on becoming a lesser factor in the grand scheme of the franchise’s history. This can change when he takes the mound on Saturday against the Philadelphia Phillies to open up the NLDS.

The stunning decision to go with Senga caught many of us by surprise even if reports the night prior suggested he could be on the NLDS roster. He’ll get the first crack at the Phillies lineup. It’s exactly what he asked for shortly after signing with the Mets back in December of 2022.

How has Mets pitcher Kodai Senga handled this Phillies lineup anyway?

Senga had to wait until May 30 in his tenth MLB start to see the Phillies. How’d he do? A 7-inning shutout gem with only one hit allowed and 9 strikeouts was the result. The Phillies got some vengeance on June 23 when they beat Senga and the Mets. They scored 4 times against him in 5.1 innings of work. Half of the runs were earned.

Past results against the Phillies specifically won’t matter much on Saturday. Senga shouldn’t be in the game especially long. Once through the lineup? Twice? Carlos Mendoza will need to have a good feel of how the team’s missing ace is doing.

The Phillies hitters haven’t changed much since last year. All of the ones he has faced in the past were with Philadelphia in 2023. Despite taking the loss against Taijuan Walker of all people, Senga didn’t have a horrific game. The only extra base hit he allowed was a two-out double to Brandon Marsh who’d end up stranded. The two earned runs he gave up came with Josh Walker on the mound in relief.

Senga gets to put his money where his mouth is on Saturday by facing what should be essentially the same Phillies lineup with maybe a few players moved around here or there. It’s exactly what he wanted. We hope he’s just what we needed.

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