Everything went well for Kodai Senga in what the Mets hope will be his one and only rehab start.
Pitching for the first time since he strained his right hamstring, Senga allowed four runs (three earned) over 3.2 innings with Double-A Binghamton on Saturday night.
Senga threw 68 pitches and gave up six hits and two walks with four strikeouts against the Hartford Yard Goats.
“He physically feels fine, so we’ll see how today, tomorrow go, and then hopefully he’s making a start for us next time,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said before Sunday afternoon’s Subway Series finale against the Yankees at Citi Field.
Senga is 7-3 with a 1.47 ERA in 13 starts this season.
He could be an option to start for the Mets as soon as next weekend’s series in Kansas City.
Senga suffered a Grain 1 strain — the lowest level of severity — as he covered first base during a June 12 win over the Washington Nationals. The right-hander, 32, landed on the 15-day injured list the next day but was never shut down from throwing, which helped expedite his rehab.
“I feel great,” Senga said through an interpreter on June 24. “I’m recovering really well.”
Since Senga’s injury, the Mets have lost fellow starters Tylor Megill to an elbow sprain, Griffin Canning to a season-ending Achilles tear and Paul Blackburn to a shoulder impingement.
They lost 14 of their first 17 games after Senga went to the IL.
“We saw it when he went down, how hard it was for us,” Mendoza said. “He’s a big part of this team. He’s a big part of this rotation, and for us to be able to get him back this quickly [is huge]. When he went down, in my head, it was more like after the All-Star break, and then for him to be in play for us now before we go on the All-Star break is huge for us.”
Shoulder and calf strains limited Senga to one regular-season start last year.
During spring training, Senga said his goal this year is to pitch at least 162 innings, which would qualify him for MLB’s statistical leaderboards and thus indicate a healthy season.
The Mets could also get left-hander Sean Manaea back for the series in Kansas City. He is set to make what could be his final rehab start on Tuesday with Triple-A Syracuse.
Manaea has not pitched in the majors after suffering an oblique strain during spring training. His rehab assignment was briefly interrupted when an MRI revealed a loose body in his throwing elbow, for which he received a cortisone shot.
WINKER’S WORK
The Mets’ lineup could get a key enforcement during the upcoming road trip, too.
Jesse Winker (oblique strain) was set to play what could be his final minor-league rehab game on Sunday with Triple-A Syracuse.
“We’ll check with him after the game today and see if there’s a chance for him to be active on Tuesday,” Mendoza said.
Winker, who has been out since May 4, entered Sunday with three hits, including a home run, in 11 at-bats over four minor-league games.
The lefty-swinging designated hitter is batting .239 with a homer and 10 RBI in 24 MLB games this season.
OTHER UPDATES
Jose Siri was set to undergo an MRI over the weekend to determine whether his fractured left tibia had healed, according to Mendoza. The speedy outfielder has been out since April 12.
“He still has a way to go,” Mendoza said.
Right-handed reliever Max Kranick is rehabbing his right elbow strain at the Mets’ facility in Port St. Lucie. He has been out since June 15.
“Last report I got was [that] he’s feeling a lot better, almost symptom-free, so he should be close to starting a throwing progression,” Mendoza said.
