Mets Kodai Senga to pitch in first rehab game since inflamed spine injury

WASHINGTON — Kodai Senga’s rehab is moving to the game phase.The Mets right-hander is scheduled to pitch Friday for Single-A St.Lucie, his first minor league rehab appearance since the team placed him on the injured list April 27 with lumbar spine inflammation.

Join Post Sports+ for exciting subscriber-only features, including real-time texting with Mike Puma about the inside buzz on the Mets.Senga, according to manager Carlos Mendoza, will throw 50-60 pitches, a maximum of four innings.

It’s still too early, Mendoza said, to know if Senga will need the full 30-day rehab window.It’s been a rough start to the season for Senga, who owns a 9.00 ERA in five starts.Senga’s lumbar inflammation was diagnosed after a third straight subpar outing in April.He is one of two pitchers who began the season in the Mets rotation now on the IL (Clay Holmes, with a fractured right fibula, is the other).

Another starting pitcher, Sean Manaea, has been relegated to mop-up duty in the bullpen.The Mets have received mixed results from reinforcements from Syracuse.Christian Scott has pitched to a 4.12 ERA in five starts.

Zach Thornton debuted for the team on Wednesday and allowed four earned runs over 4 ¹/₃ innings.Mark Vientos made a highlight-reel play at first base with a diving stop in the fifth inning that retired CJ Abrams for the final out and prevented the tying run from scoring in the Mets’ 2-1 victory over the Nationals.“You have to give him a lot of credit because he continues to work every day with the coaching staff and he’s gotten so much better,” Mendoza said.“He’s comfortable.

That wasn’t an easy play.It was a bullet and then he got a good first step on it.

Overall, the awareness on bunt plays, there’s a lot that he is doing right.” Sign up for Inside the Mets by Mike Puma, exclusively on Sports+ Please provide a valid email.By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

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