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The 33-year-old Senga will make $14 million next season in the final year of his five-year, $75 million deal. The Mets might have to pay that down a little if they want to move on, but Senga hasn’t lost any velocity since arriving in the U.S. and still has ample strikeout ability. A fresh start might be best for both parties at this point, especially since Senga would prefer to start.

Senga struck out two batters in a perfect ninth inning. He picked up his eighth save despite Devin Williams being activated earlier in the day. It appears Senga is still the favorite for saves with the Mets. New York has five more games remaining this week.

Senga entered the ninth inning with a three-run lead and gave up back-to-back one-out doubles before recording back-to-back strikeouts to end the game. The Marlins brought the tying run to the plate, but it was still another relatively low-stress outing for the fill-in closer Senga, who now has seven saves.

Senga’s save was his sixth of the season. He recorded one strikeout in a perfect ninth inning. Senga has converted all six of his save opportunities for the Mets since he started closing games in August.

Senga got the call to protect a one-run lead in the final frame and made things interesting by issuing a leadoff walk to Jonny DeLuca. He bounced back by getting Richie Palacious to ground into a fielder’s choice before coaxing a fly out from Taylor Walls and striking out Yandy Díaz to end it. It was a nice bounce-back for Senga after giving up a walk-off homer to the White Sox in his previous save chance last weekend.

This leaves Senga 0-9 on the season. This was the first time Senga had pitched on back-to-back days since being moved to the pen (and, obviously, also before that). His velocity was down a tad on his nine pitches, the last of which was a fastball hit for a walkoff homer by Tristan Peters. It’s a bad result, but he still hasn’t blown a save in four tries and he should keep closing for the Mets for now.

Senga got into big trouble in the ninth, allowing three straight to reach with one out, but the Padres then made the baffling decision to have Austin Hays bat for Sung-Mun Song, and Hays, who last collected a hit against a right-hander on May 1, grounded into game-ending double play. The run Senga allowed was the first he’s given up in six appearances this month.

Senga now has all three of the Mets’ saves since August 10. Devin Williams is on the IL with a strained shoulder, and his absence isn’t expected to be long. It remains to be seen whether Senga sticks in the ninth once Williams returns. For now, the veteran right-hander is having success, which hasn’t always been the case in recent years. His only appearances since Williams went down have come in save situations.

Senga is the Mets closer right now. This is the second lead he was tasked to protect this week and he’s secured both opportunities. This one got a bit hairy as he let the tying run come to the plate in a three-run game. Still, he got out of it with a nasty ghost fork and looks like a relatively trustworthy ninth inning option moving forward.

His one previous career save came as a 20-year-old rookie reliever for Softbank in 2013. Working with a three-run lead, Senga struck out Matt Olson and Michael Harris II and then got Mauricio Dubón to fly out after an Ozzie Albies walk. Senga’s fastball has been at 96-99 mph as a short reliever, and his secondaries are up more than his fastball is. Any success he enjoys will still come down to command, but those desperate for saves might want to give him a look while Devin Williams is out.

Senga cruised early, but hit a wall in the fifth of this one. Up until that point, he hadn’t walked a batter, threw a first-pitch strike to 11 of the 13 he faced, and only needed 33 pitches to get through four innings. That’s remarkable efficiency for anyone who’s watched Senga pitch this season. His cutter had some extra life and he was not afraid to attack hitters in the zone. Then, in that fifth inning, he walked the first two batters he faced and was pulled after a double brought a run home. Both of the runners he left on base came around to score, soiling his final line. Still, this was a fine outing all things considered, especially because Senga was thrust into action in place of Freddy Peralta as trade rumors swirl. If Senga gets another turn in the rotation, it will come next week against the Pirates.

Good news for Marlins hitters based on how this year has gone. Senga will get yet another chance to improve on his 8.85 ERA in 40 2/3 innings this year. He’s allowed 12 homers and walked 30 batters in those innings.

Senga left with the Mets up 9-4, which put him in line for a rather undeserved victory, but then the Royals scored 12 runs off Austin Warren and Matt Seelinger between the fifth and seventh innings. That might have made Senga look better in comparison, but four walks while generating just six whiffs isn’t a good combination. He’ll be available to pitch Sunday against the Red Sox, but it remains to see what kind of form that will take. The Mets would probably go with a bullpen game if they get length from Freddy Peralta on Saturday.

It went as a tough loss for Senga, who dropped to 0-7. He entered with the Mets down 3-0, but the team rallied to take a 4-3 lead before Senga gave up a two-run homer to Kyle Schwarber in the seventh. Aside from that, Senga was quite good. He got himself into a big jam in the sixth, with Alec Bohm walking to start the inning and Brandon Marsh following with a double. However, he escaped without a run scoring. After Schwarber’s homer in the seventh, Senga retired eight of nine batters to conclude his outing. It might be enough to get him a start next weekend in Atlanta, but we’ll have to wait and see.

Senga has a 10.08 ERA in seven starts this season and has not looked like a pitcher the Mets want coming out of the bullpen either. However, he needs to accept a demotion to Triple-A, and the team doesn’t have many other options right now.

Senga was terrific in the first tonight, averaging 97.8 mph on his 12 fastballs and striking out both Pete Crow-Armstrong and Michael Busch in a perfect inning. After that, though, his fastball plummeted to 95 mph on average, he gave the Cubs six free baserunners and two of the three hits he allowed left the yard. After the game, it sounded like his time in the rotation might come to an end for now. In theory, Senga still has enough in the tank, even while throwing 95 mph, to retire major league hitters. he struck out six tonight and allowed just three hard-hit balls. In practice, though, he’s 0-9 with an 8.10 ERA in 15 starts since last year’s All-Star break.

This contest stood zero chance with showers in the forecast throughout the evening at Citi Field. It’ll be made up as a split doubleheader on Wednesday. It’s a tough break for the Cubs as they’re rained out for the second consecutive contest, which pushes Shota Imanaga back an additional day. He’ll be pitching on seven days of rest when he gets the ball on Tuesday at Citi Field. It’ll likely be Kodai Senga drawing the starting assignment for his second turn in New York’s rotation after allowing four runs over four innings in his return from the injured list last week.

Senga’s return from the injured list got off to a rocky start as he struggled to find the strike zone and needed 36 pitches to complete an opening frame where he allowed four runs on two hits and a pair of walks. He walked the first two batters he faced before coughing up a no-doubter to Sal Stewart into the left-field seats. He also gave up a solo shot to Spencer Steer in the frame. He managed to complete four innings, finishing with five strikeout and four walks. He’s been far too unpredictable for fantasy managers to consider trusting him when he faces the Cubs his next time out on Monday.

Senga is back to make his return after missing close to two months with both a back and arm issue. The right-hander was awful prior to his placement on the injured list, and while Senga has had success at the highest level, fantasy managers may want to see how he looks in the majors before rushing to the waiver wire.

Senga will return to New York’s rotation for the first time since late April. The 33-year-old was hit extremely hard in five early-season starts and is hardly a recommended streaming option for fantasy managers, especially with this outing coming in hitter-friendly Cincinnati. He’s shown flashes of fantasy relevance in the past, which is why he’s worth monitoring in deeper mixed leagues.