The always meticulous Senga, who is fighting through his mechanics, has been pretty bad since returning from the injured list. He hasn’t been the Kodai Senga we grew accustomed to seeing pre-hamstring injury. That Kodai Senga was bound for the All-Star Game in Atlanta. However, this version of Kodai Senga bears a striking resemblance to the one we saw in the 2024 playoffs.

The 32-year-old has looked a bit unceremonious since his first start off the injured list in Kansas City. In what’s become emblematic of his last three performances on the mound, the Japanese right-handed starter struggled through four innings in the Mets’ 12-6 win over the Giants, allowing four runs on five hits, striking out four while walking three.

Since pitching four scoreless innings in New York’s final series before the All-Star Break, Senga has pitched just 12 innings, allowing 11 runs on 13 hits while striking out 12 and walking 11. He’s also allowed four homes in his past three games. Prior to getting injured, Senga had his bouts with command issues, sure, but he only allowed four home runs in those first 13 starts. He’s getting hit. And he’s getting hit hard.

Prior to being shelved for a few weeks, Senga’s ERA stood at 1.47. After being pulled in favor of Reed Garrett without factoring into Saturday’s decision, his ERA had ballooned up to 2.31. His numbers are still really good. And they would place anyone else in the National League Cy Young — perennial All-Star — conversation, of course, if there was a larger sample size. However, Senga has struggled mightily as of late.

One of the calling cards for Senga’s early season successes was pitching with runners in scoring position. Whenever that is a pitcher’s calling card, regression is usually around the corner. Senga’s expected figures, albeit still strong, were always higher than his actual production. Regression was bound to hit Senga at some point, that is what we are unfortunately seeing recently.

Hopefully, Senga is able to cut this regression off, and pitch to the pitcher he has shown to be throughout his career. Pitching has been largely a bright spot for New York all season long, however, with seemingly most of the team’s starter struggling recently, especially with going deep into games, Senga’s ability to figure it out is paramount.

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With a rotation riddled by injuries — Kodai Senga, Frankie Montas, Griffin Canning, and Sean Manaea all missing time — the Mets’ bullpen has been asked to do far too much. The result? A relief staff that’s stretched thin, trying to clean up after an underperforming, incomplete rotation.

There was a stretch in June that looked eerily familiar, almost a sequel to the 2023 unraveling. But, lately, the Mets have started to claw out of it. They’ve taken three of their last four series, relying on patchwork pitching and just enough from the arms that matter. The back-to-back wins this weekend? Those had Senga and Montas written on them.

Mandatory Credit: Peter Aiken-Imagn Images

Since David Peterson’s complete game on June 11, the Mets have had a starter record an out in the sixth inning just four times — all by Peterson.

That trend didn’t break during Saturday’s 3–1 win over Kansas City. Frankie Montas was pulled after surrendering back-to-back doubles in the sixth, but not before delivering his most encouraging outing as a Met. Over five innings, the former Brewers right-handed starter allowed one run on four hits, striking out five without issuing a walk. It wasn’t a quality start on paper, but it was exactly the kind of outing New York needed. Reed Garrett cleaned up the sixth, and the bullpen held from there.

Almost.

Edwin Díaz flirted with trouble in the eighth but escaped thanks to a favorable replay review. Even so, he’s been lights out since April. Since April 22, Díaz, who will be representing the Mets at the 2025 All-Star Game in Atlanta, has allowed just one earned run in 28 1/3 innings. Over that stretch he has 40 strikeouts, seven walks, 13 hits, and 13 saves, including Saturday’s six-out effort. He’s back to pounding the zone, commanding his stuff, and missing bats with purpose.

Montas doesn’t need to be an ace. Díaz doesn’t need to be perfect. But if the Mets can get five clean innings from their starters and Díaz keeps locking down leads, they might finally have a formula that holds. It’s not ideal — the formula could use a little more length — but it sure works better than whatever New York had been running with since Senga went down with a hamstring injury.

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The pitching hasn’t been the same since Kodai Senga went down, and Frankie Montas didn’t exactly toss a gem on Saturday, either. But this time around, the bats picked him up, pounding the New York Yankees in a 12-6 rout. It’s a role reversal. Early in the season, it was the arms carrying the load as the Mets climbed to the best record in baseball through June. Now, it’s the offense returning the favor.

In Saturday’s win, Starling Marte went 2-for-3 with an RBI double. Francisco Lindor reached base four times and scored four runs. Pete Alonso clobbered two home runs — putting him just seven shy of the franchise record — and drove in five. And Brandon Nimmo? He just keeps coming up big.

In the home half of the first inning, the Mets were off to the races with walks to Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso, with Juan Soto dropping down a surprise sacrifice bunt in between. Then, came Nimmo. Just two days after hitting a grand slam against Milwaukee, he did it again. It was his third slam of the season, making him the first Met since Carlos Beltrán in 2006 to pull off that feat, and his third homer in four games. Citi Field erupted.

The Mets scored 12 runs on 10 hits Saturday. And while Jeff McNeil — the hero of their July 4 win — was idle on Saturday, the lineup didn’t miss a beat. Make no mistake: they’ll eventually need production from the bottom third. Maybe that arrives when Jesse Winker returns from the injured list or Francisco Alvarez gets the call back from Triple-A Syracuse. Maybe Brett Baty and Mark Vientos cobble together enough offense to keep the line moving.

But right now, the stars are hitting. And the Mets are winning.

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Soto erupted in the Mets’ 11–4 win on Saturday, racking up four hits, four RBIs, and launching two home runs — the 26th multi-homer game of his career. Over his last 30 games, he’s hitting .274 with a .962 OPS, eight homers, a walk rate north of 19%, and a strikeout rate under 15%.

This is the version of Soto that the Mets paid for. And the version opposing teams dread. He’s not just producing; he’s controlling games. He’s taking borderline pitches, drawing walks, and jumping all over mistakes. The power has come back without sacrificing plate discipline, and that’s when he’s at his most terrifying. When Soto starts stacking multi-hit games with this kind of command of the strike zone, it’s not just a hot streak. It’s a reminder that he’s one of the best pure hitters on the planet. And right now, he’s playing like it.

The Mets were desperate. They’d lost seven straight after ripping off six in a row. They entered Saturday out of first place for the first time in two months. Griffin Canning was fine, but he didn’t silence Philly’s lineup.

The Mets needed a spark. Juan Soto lit the match.

This is what makes Soto so dangerous. Even when the results weren’t there, the approach rarely wavered. Now the barrels are back, and so is the fear he puts into pitchers every single at-bat.

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After lighting it up in March and April and looking like a completely different pitcher, all the offseason changes he made just haven’t stuck. The velocity spike was real, the new pitch mix looked promising, and for a minute, it felt like the Mets might have finally unlocked something. But since then, it’s been a whole lot of the same.

Megill seemed to be figuring it out early on. Through six starts, he had a 1.74 ERA and was pitching like a guy ready to turn a corner. Then, May happened. Over his last eight starts, he’s been hit hard and hit often—his ERA over that stretch is 5.79, and his season number has climbed to 3.95.

Sunday didn’t help. He couldn’t get out of the fourth, giving up six runs (three earned) in 3 2/3 innings. Manager Carlos Mendoza said the inning “spiraled” on him. He also said Megill threw a lot of “uncompetitive” pitches.

Megill’s Mets career has been a rollercoaster. The hot streaks tend to come early. The fade usually follows. It’s been this way for a while now. Whether it’s command, composure, or just a lack of a consistent out pitch, Megill hasn’t been able to string together a full, reliable season.

With Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas set to return soon and Nolan McLean waiting in the wings, the rotation’s not short on options. And if Megill keeps pitching like this, he’s going to be the odd man out.

The Mets don’t need Megill to be an ace. They just need him not to implode. Right now, that’s not happening. The window of opportunity is still cracked open, but for Megill, it’s closing fast, because the next bad start might knock him out of the rotation.

And at this point in his Mets career, how many more chances are really left?

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What we do know is he’s a legitimate National League Cy Young contender, nearly a dozen starts into his 2025 campaign. And, as he improved to 6-3 on the season in New York’s 8-2 win over the Colorado Rockies on Saturday, he reminded all of us that he might just be the most under-the-radar ace in the sport.

After giving up a solo homer to Ezequiel Tovar — just the second home run he’s ever allowed on his splitter in the majors — Senga locked in. He retired 17 straight Rockies at one point and didn’t allow a single hit between the second and seventh innings. The only real blemish came via a leadoff walk in the seventh, which later came around to score.

He allowed just two runs on two hits in 6 1/3 innings, while striking out seven and recording 13 whiffs.

In all 11 games he’s started this season, Senga has allowed three runs or fewer. That trend continued as he and the Mets beat up on a beleaguered Rockies ball club. After surrendering a first-inning home run, the Mets responded quickly, capped off by a Brett Baty bases-clearing triple that gave Senga breathing room.

Kodai Senga (34) Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

From there, he cruised.

It’s easy to dismiss strong outings against bad teams, but Senga has done this to everyone. While he came into Saturday with a 1.46 ERA and left Citi Field with a 1.60, he still leads all National League pitchers in ERA and is third in the bigs behind Kris Bubic (Kansas City) and Nathan Eovaldi (Texas).

Beyond Tovar’s solo shot, Senga is keeping the ball in the yard. And he’s looking more and more like a pitcher fully in control of his craft in his third season with the Mets. Last season doesn’t really count for the purposes of he threw just five regular season innings before making a couple of unexpected postseason cameos. The injuries now behind him, there’s no considerable sophomore (or junior) slump. He’s just a guy who who now understands exactly how to navigate a major league lineup.

There’s no runaway Cy Young favorite in the National League right now. That leaves the door wide open, and Senga’s walking right through it. He might not get the same attention as some of the bigger names, but the numbers are doing all the talking.

At some point, people are going to have to start listening.

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The former top-100 prospect appears to have turned a corner in his latest opportunity to prove he belongs in the big leagues. Since being recalled from Triple-A Syracuse to replace the injured Jesse Winker (oblique), the 25-year-old Baty has rediscovered his swing. In two games against the Chicago Cubs, he’s launched three home runs, including a multi-homer performance in Saturday’s 6-5 loss.

Baty was responsible for all of the Mets’ offense Saturday night in Flushing, but it wasn’t enough to lift New York past the National League Central-leading Cubs. With Tylor Megill laboring, and Max Kranick allowing a go-ahead two-run single in the eighth inning, the Mets ultimately dug themselves too deep a hole to climb out of. Still, Baty did everything he could to shovel them back into contention.

Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

He crushed a three-run homer off Cade Horton in the fourth inning, welcoming the Cubs’ top pitching prospect to the majors with a bang. Then, he added a two-run shot off Julian Merryweather to bring the Mets back within one. It wasn’t enough, but if this really is the beginning of Baty’s breakout, the Mets may have found a spark amid another frustrating night at the dish.

It’s been a bumpy ride for Baty, who once again impressed in spring training before stumbling out of the gate to start the season. By the time he finally found his footing, it was already time for a demotion. But he’s picked up right where he left off, and this sudden power surge adds a jolt to a Mets lineup that’s seen both third base and designated hitter struggle to get going.

If Baty can seize this opportunity and settle in, the Mets may have finally found the offensive depth they’ve been missing. It’s early, but this version of Baty could change the shape of the lineup, and maybe the course of a career that was starting to look like it would need a change of scenery sooner rather than later.

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He threw 13 pitches before being sidelined by Mother Nature. He returned nearly 50 minutes later to finish the first inning with a scoreless frame. He’d only throw 57 more pitches on the afternoon, as the weather was really the only thing affecting him from going the distance.

Holmes left his latest start of the season with a 2-0 lead. He handed the baton off to Danny Young, and the Mets bullpen did what its done all season – hold up a bunch of zeroes in the box score.

In a 2-0 win over the Washington Nationals, Holmes lowered his ERA on the season to 2.64. With each passing start, he gets better and better. He looks less like the pitcher who struggled to find the strike zone in an Opening Day loss to the Houston Astros, and more like the converted reliever who ran roughshod over the rest of the Grapefruit League in spring training.

Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Holmes, who improved to 3-1 on the season, pitched five scoreless innings, allowing no runs on four hits. He struck out only two Nationals, but more importantly he didn’t walk a batter in those five frames. When Holmes has struggled this season, it’s because he can’t find the strike zone. He had no problem doing so as the Mets earned their 19th win of the year to improve to 11 games over .500.

But Holmes also wasn’t missing bats like he usually does. But that’s because he was able to get an overly aggressive Nationals lineup to bite on his sinker, which resulted in 10-of-15 outs being committed on the ground.

Holmes would’ve had a chance to get more outs if not for the delay. According to his manager, Carlos Mendoza, the Mets would’ve tried to squeeze at least two more innings out of Holmes. Instead, New York turned to Young, Reed Garrett, A.J. Minter (who left with triceps tightness), Max Kranick and Edwin Diaz to preserve Holmes’ gem.

On an afternoon where Holmes wasn’t missing bats, he still got outs. It just goes to show how effective New York’s pitching can be, even when they aren’t recording whiffs. We’ve seen this happen with Kodai Senga, Griffin Canning, and David Peterson already this season. And it happened with Holmes on Saturday.

Even when their pitchers aren’t piling up strikeouts, the Mets find ways to dominate. Holmes didn’t need overpowering stuff to carve up the Nationals — just good command, a heavy sinker, and a defense ready to handle the rest.

It’s the kind of formula that keeps adding up to wins, and on Saturday, it was more than enough.

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It wasn’t that the St. Louis Cardinals — now losers of three straight at Citi Field — batted him around the ballpark. But Senga’s signature forkball wasn’t missing bats like it usually does. He managed just four strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings, a far cry from the whiff-heavy outings he’s flashed before, like his dominant showing in West Sacramento.

Still, like so many Mets aces before him, Senga found a way. He dug deep and kept the scoreboard clean, extending his streak of scoreless innings since surrendering a run in the first inning of his season debut.

The Cardinals put plenty of traffic on the basepaths, reaching scoring position multiple times. But Senga never wavered. He stayed poised, composed, and in control. His manager noted he looked like a different pitcher, not because he was rattled or overwhelmed, but because he leaned on his entire arsenal. And he needed every bit of it across an 89-pitch effort.

Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Once Reed Garrett came in and cleaned up Senga’s mess in the sixth, the book officially closed on the 32-year-old right-hander. Senga hasn’t allowed a run in his last three starts, a stretch now spanning 17 2/3 innings. With Saturday’s outing in the books, his ERA dipped from 1.06 to 0.79. That 0.79 mark is the second-lowest in the major leagues.

Not bad.

For a team that now leads the league in ERA (2.27), there were still plenty of questions about the rotation, and none bigger than Senga. Last year was supposed to be his breakout, the year he made a real push for the Cy Young. Instead, it was a mess. Injuries kept him off the mound for almost the entire regular season, and when he did return, he was a non-factor in the playoffs. His health was in doubt. So was the idea that 2023 wasn’t just a fluke.

So far this year? Different story.

It’s early, but if this is the version of Senga the Mets get moving forward, the rest of the league’s got a problem.

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Lindor delivered the walk-off sacrifice fly in the New York Mets’ 3–2 comeback win over the Blue Jays on Saturday, but it was his old buddy Winker who did the heavy lifting. Winker ripped a game-tying, two-run triple in the bottom of the eighth — his second triple of the night — to set the table for Lindor’s heroics.

For context: in 2,791 career plate appearances entering Saturday, Winker had three triples. Total. He nearly matched that output in one night at Citi Field.

The first came off Chris Bassitt. The second, the more pivotal of the two, came off Brendon Little and helped knock George Springer out of the game. Springer misplayed the ball near the warning track and left injured after crashing into the wall.

The most intriguing aspect of Winker’s game-tying triple? It came off a left-handed pitcher. Prior to Saturday’s game, only 20% of Winker’s major league at-bats had come against left-handed pitching. Why? He owns a lackluster .660 OPS against southpaws in his career. Winker proved that all didn’t matter Saturday night.

Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Winker isn’t exactly known for his speed, but on Saturday night, he didn’t need to be. He just needed to be opportunistic.

To be fair, it’s not his first clutch triple since he arrived in Queens. He had a big one in the National League Wild Card series last fall against Milwaukee, the one where he jawed at Willy Adames rounding second and reportedly got told to meet him in the parking lot afterward.

But, Saturday was something else entirely. Winker didn’t just flash the wheels; he sparked the comeback, flipped the momentum, and maybe even stretched a few muscles he hasn’t used since 2021.

For a Mets offense starved for runs, Winker provided a timely snack. He came into Saturday’s game with just two hits on the season and left with three more. Winker went 3-for-4 with a double, two triples, and two RBIs — his most impressive night as a Met since his walk-off homer against Baltimore last season.

He won’t be able to hit many triples, and that’s fine. The Mets will take production however they can get it, especially from a veteran bat who started this year on the other side of a platoon.

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