New York Mets Make A Decision On Adding Pitching After Injury To Ace

The New York Mets have made a decision on what their next step is after losing their ace pitcher to injury.

Port St. Lucie - The New York Mets took a pretty massive hit in the pitching department on Thursday.

It was a bad day for the entire Mets organization, as they learned that Japanese ace starting pitcher Kodai Senga will be out indefinitely with a right posterior capsule strain behind his throwing shoulder.

The Mets deliberately opted to roll with Senga, who is coming off a first season in the big-leagues where he was the runner-up for NL Rookie of the Year, as their No. 1 starter heading into 2024. However, this decision has backfired, as Senga will be sidelined for an unknown period of time, and is expected to begin the regular season on the injured list.

And while president of baseball operations David Stearns and the Mets do not know when their star righty will be able to return, that doesn't mean they are looking to bring in outside help. 

According to Stearns, the organization is satisfied with the starting pitching depth that they have and Senga's injury does not effect their plan.

The Mets' external options would be a pair of lefties in reigning Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell and former Texas Rangers' and Yankees' hurler Jordan Montgomery. But New York would have to pay an 110 percent tax on every dollar on either contract, which would double the total figure.

For that, the team will likely go with what they have, which is Luis Severino, Sean Manaea, Jose Quintana, Adrian Houser and likely Tylor Megill, who is no stranger to having to serve as a fill-in starter due to injury. They also have Joey Lucchesi and Jose Butto as options. But as for the minor league starters, Stearns wants to see them pitch in the minors first this year.

The Mets are hopeful that Senga won't miss too much time after the regular season starts, and Stearns is confident that his ace will make a lot of starts for the club this year, but they won't have a good idea on a timetable until the symptoms subside. A shoulder injury is never a good sign when it comes to a pitcher, but the Mets appear to be content on standing pat despite the bad news.