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Mets trades to replace Kodai Senga: 1 emergency transplant, 1 tourniquet, 1 Band-Aid

How will the Mets treat losing Kodai Senga for the year?

By Tim Boyle |
Atlanta Braves v New York Mets
Atlanta Braves v New York Mets / Jim McIsaac/GettyImages
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When we woke up on Saturday, we held our breaths hoping for the best possible news about Kodai Senga. He exited his start on Friday against the Atlanta Braves only for us to find out early in the afternoon the New York Mets missing ace from 2024 is now expected to be out for the rest of the regular season.

The Mets will need to move forward and prioritize adding a starting pitcher before Tuesday’s trade deadline. No longer are back-end arms the most important. The Mets now need to consider leveling up what they’re willing to seek.

Divided into three categories, here is one emergency transplant, one tourniquet, and one Band-Aid the Mets should have under consideration.

Emergency Transplant: Trade for Jack Flaherty

Although it’s teammate Tarik Skubal who’d completely change the Mets, the much more reasonably priced rental Jack Flaherty would be pretty sweet to add to the rotation. Among all of the free agent pitchers who settled for one-year contracts in the offseason, one we should be most upset about the Mets not nabbing is Jack Flaherty. There wasn’t much of a hint of him being on their radar. Coming off of a weak finish after getting dealt to the Baltimore Orioles, he was a more youthful option for teams looking for short-term health.

The Detroit Tigers have benefited greatly from Flaherty whose $14 million is in the same ballpark as AAVs of multiple Mets starting pitchers. A pure rental but perhaps a candidate to return next season, he has gone 7-5 with a 2.95 ERA in his 18 starts for Detroit.

Flaherty has impressed with a career-high strikeout rate of 11.2 per 9 while limiting walks to only 1.6 per 9. For a Mets pitching staff that has issued more free passes than a theme park trying to cover-up how dangerous their waterslides are by welcoming residents fee free, he’d be a clichéd breath of fresh air.

The problem with this emergency transplant to the Mets roster is he’ll have a whole lot of suitors and should cost quite a bit more than some of the other available starting pitchers.

Tourniquet: Trade for Erick Fedde

Erick Fedde is one of the more interesting trade candidates out there and a guy the Mets were linked to in the offseason. Viewed as the runners-up, he signed with the Chicago White Sox for two years and $15 million. Rouged up in possibly his last outing for them on Saturday night with 3 earned runs in 4 innings versus the Seattle Mariners, Fedde still has some solid numbers this year.

Through 21 starts he’s 7-4 with a 3.11 ERA. A walk rate of 2.5 per 9 to go with 8 strikeouts per 9 is close to what you’d want from a starting pitcher.

Fedde would be a tourniquet for the Mets to stop the bleeding in Senga’s absence. Sticking around through next year as well, the only fear would be a regression back to his personal mean. Fedde pitched to a 5.41 ERA in 454.1 innings with the Washington Nationals prior to moving to Korea for a year where he won the league’s MVP. It’s not unfathomable for an older dog to learn a new trick. For the sake of the 2024 season alone, he is worth any unwarranted fears of a sudden regression.

Many have speculated in the past that Fedde would be a Mets trade deadline target because of their need in next year’s rotation. Add him in and he has potential to be the ace of the staff.

Band-Aid: Trade for Michael Lorenzen

It seems like a lot of the pitchers who’ll be on the move in the next few days were free agents this past winter. Yet another, Michael Lorenzen, feels like more of a Band-Aid than anything else. He’s having a good year and yet the acquisition of him onto the Mets roster wouldn’t feel quite the same as pitchers on the level of Flaherty or Fedde.

Lorenzen got obliterated on Saturday against the Toronto Blue Jays while failing to get through the first inning. He hasn’t been too sharp of late. His steady 3.87 ERA is ticking upward. It’s at 6.32 in July after 4 starts. Based on what we saw happen last year when he went from the Detroit Tigers to the Philadelphia Phillies, there should be some concern about a second-half breakdown. Lorenzen pitched a no-hitter for the Phillies then looked cooked and was eventually moved into the bullpen.

The Mets’ wound requires more than a Band-Aid right now. Without a significant starting pitcher addition to the roster, their chances in the playoffs are thin. Over the last week or so the Mets have piled up wins but not often because of the starting pitching. We’re fortunate to get 5 out of Sean Manaea.

Not all injuries should be treated the same. Losing Senga, who was supposed to be the second-half savior/morale boost/well-rested ace, requires a larger piece of medical equipment than an adhesive bandage.

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