[ad_1]
NEW YORK — Kodai Senga’s season debut was going about as well as the New York Mets could have hoped Friday night: The right-hander had nine strikeouts through five innings against the Atlanta Braves, and the Mets held a six-run lead in what would be an eventual 8-4 victory to take the top spot in the National League wild-card race.
Then Austin Riley hit a measly infield popup and Senga tumbled to the ground, writhing in pain, before the ball landed in first baseman Pete Alonso’s glove.
Senga ended up on his back, grabbing his left calf. An athletic trainer rushed out to check on him. Senga stood up and limped off the field to an ovation from an appreciative — and concerned — home crowd.
Minutes later, the Mets announced Senga exited with a left calf strain. Senga, who was not made available to reporters after the game, is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Saturday. Manager Carlos Mendoza said he was told it was not an Achilles injury but hinted that Senga could miss an extended period.
“You hate to see him go down like that, especially after what he’s been through the whole year,” Mendoza said. “But people will step up if he’s down.”
For five innings, there was nothing to be concerned about. The shoulder injury that had landed Senga on the injured list to start the season was a distant memory. The mechanical hiccups that the cautious Senga cited as the reason for his longer-than-expected recovery period were nonexistent.
His only rough patch surfaced in the second inning when he gave up a leadoff single to Travis d’Arnaud. Two batters later, Adam Duvall swatted a two-run home run to give Atlanta a 2-0 lead.
The Mets, keeping to their recent form,…
[ad_2]
