Mets ace expected to start season on injured list with shoulder injury

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The New York Mets will have to choose a new opening day starter.

Kodai Senga, who impressed in his first MLB season after playing pro in Japan for 11 years, is likely to start the season on the injured list with a shoulder injury, the team announced Thursday.

Senga felt "arm fatigue" Wednesday, which is alarming with pitchers and catchers reporting just last week. The Mets sent him for tests that revealed more than fatigue.

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The New York Mets' Kodai Senga pitches during the first inning of a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers July 15, 2023, in New York.  (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

The right-hander has a moderate right posterior capsule strain in his throwing shoulder, president of baseball operations David Stearns said.

Stearns said Senga, who became the Mets' ace last year, will likely miss opening day, "but I do expect him to make a bunch of starts for us this year.

"This is not a surgical-type problem. This is something with rest and treatment — potentially an injection — that can move this forward," Stearns said in Port St. Lucie, via SNY.

"At this point, I'm not gonna be able to perform at the highest level," Senga said through the team's interpreter on Thursday. "So giving it a little bit of time is the right move.

"If we can treat it now, we can get over this hump quick."

Kodai Senga of the New York Mets delivers a pitch against the Miami Marlins during the second inning of a game at loanDepot Park April 2, 2023, in Miami, Fla. (Megan Briggs/Getty Images)

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The Mets are mixing and matching their rotation this