The New York Mets may be preparing an unexpected closer experiment.
Kodai Senga, an All-Star starter in 2023, could receive ninth-inning opportunities after Devin Williams landed on the 15-day injured list Monday with a right shoulder strain. MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo reported that the Mets will not name a replacement closer and that Senga may get looks in the ninth.
That possibility transforms Senga’s recent bullpen move. The right-hander was removed from New York’s rotation after a brutal 2026 season, but two recent appearances showed his best pitches could play differently in short bursts.
Kodai Senga Emerges After $51 Million Closer Goes Down
GettyRelief pitcher Kodai Senga #34 of the New York Mets pitches during the seventh inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field on August 06, 2026 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
Williams missed time last week with arm fatigue, then allowed two runs Friday in Pittsburgh. The Mets placed him on the injured list three days later and recalled Jonathan Pintaro.
The official MLB injury report says Williams owns a 4.66 ERA through 42 appearances. He has 16 saves in the first season of the three-year, $51 million contract he signed in December.
New York’s options are thin. The Mets traded primary setup men Luke Weaver and Brooks Raley before the August 3 deadline. Daniel Duarte earned a save in Williams’s absence last week, while Dedniel Núñez and Jefry Yan are late-inning candidates.
But Senga is the name that intrigues the most. MLB.com reported that interim manager Andy Green plans to use him in one-inning stints and evaluate him as a leverage reliever.
“I do think in his right arm is 100 miles an hour and a nasty forkball,” Green said, “and that profile plays for a late-inning reliever.”
Senga’s Two Scoreless Innings Change Conversation
GettyLuis Torrens #13 and Kodai Senga #34 of the New York Mets celebrate their team’s 6-2 win over the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field on August 04, 2026 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Getty Images)
The experiment began encouragingly. Senga worked a scoreless ninth in a 6-2 victory over Cleveland on August 4, reaching 98.8 mph while opening with six straight fastballs. He followed with a perfect seventh inning two days later, striking out two during a 13-6 win.
Those appearances cannot erase his season. Senga is 0-8 with an 8.29 ERA, 1.71 WHIP, and 55 strikeouts over 46.2 innings, according to his official statistics. He allowed 43 earned runs and 12 home runs across eight starts and seven relief appearances.
Still, the closer question is less about what Senga was as a struggling starter than what he could become by featuring his fastball and ghost fork for three outs. He excelled in that formula before: Senga posted a 2.98 ERA with 202 strikeouts as a rookie starter in 2023.
Williams’s absence does not guarantee Senga the ninth inning. The Mets are expected to use a committee, and Williams’s injury is not currently viewed as long-term.
Yet New York now has a reason to test its $75 million All-Star, where every pitch carries pressure. Senga entered August fighting to preserve a place on the 2027 roster. Succeeding as a closer candidate could give Senga’s career with the Mets a dramatically different direction.
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