It seems reinforcements for the Mets’ rotation are on the horizon. Right-hander Kodai Senga, who’s missed the entire season thus far with a shoulder injury, is slated to throw 40 pitches in the first start of a minor league rehab assignment, per Will Sammon of The Athletic. New York will also recall top prospect Christian Scott from Triple-A Syracuse to start Wednesday’s game, manager Carlos Mendoza confirmed to reporters (X link via Anthony DiComo of MLB.com). Speculation regarding that possibility began when Scott was scratched from a scheduled start in Syracuse despite not having an injury.
Senga suffered a moderate capsule strain in his shoulder back in spring training. What was originally supposed to be a much shorter absence has been prolonged by multiple setbacks. Senga was facing live hitters in late April but scaled back to bullpen sessions without hitters as he looked to get his mechanics back on track. While going through that step, he incurred a triceps injury that necessitated a cortisone injection and led to another five-day shutdown. He’s been built up slowly but now seems ready to pitch in a game setting. He’ll surely require multiple rehab starts before he’s cleared to return. Tomorrow’s start will kick off a 30-day rehab window, though he can be activated earlier than that 30-day maximum, of course.
As for Scott, he’ll return to the big leagues after impressing in his first five MLB starts earlier this season. The 2021 fifth-rounder tossed 27 2/3 innings of 3.90 ERA ball with a 22.3% strikeout rate, 5.4% walk rate, 34.2% grounder rate and 0.98 HR/9. Since returning to the minors, Scott has made four starts but been limited to 17 innings as the Mets look to manage his workload.
The 25-year-old Scott tossed only 87 2/3 innings last year and is already up to 70 innings this season. Managing his workload in the minors is easier than doing so in the majors, where the surging Mets have climbed back to .500 and thrust themselves into the midst of the NL Wild Card picture. Scott will now step back into the rotation alongside Luis Severino, Sean Manaea, Jose Quintana and David Peterson.
The looming changes to the Mets’ rotation come at a time when there have been rumblings about the team’s willingness to potentially move a veteran big league starter while still taking aim at pushing for the postseason. A trade involving staff leader Severino seems quite difficult to envision — and indeed, SNY’s Andy Martino reported yesterday is overwhelmingly unlikely so long as the team remains in playoff reach — but Quintana seems feasible (speculatively speaking).
The Mets have a growing collection of depth, with Severino, Manaea, Quintana, Peterson and Scott in the majors, Senga on the mend, and the trio of Tylor Megill, Joey Lucchesi and Jose Butto on the 40-man roster down in Triple-A. Last year’s second-round pick, Brandon Sproat, has a sub-2.00 ERA in 67 innings between High-A and Double-A this season.
Senga’s progress and Scott’s performance in his big league return will be worth watching with a careful eye, as they’ll both be factors in the Mets’ willingness (or lack thereof) to deal from the big league staff in the weeks ahead. If the rotation depth looks sufficient, perhaps a veteran like Quintana could be flipped for some big league bullpen help — the sort of exchange between buyers that could fill needs on both clubs (while, in the Mets’ case, potentially shaving as much as $13MM from the books between Quintana’s salary and luxury-tax hit).
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