Kodai Senga Not Guaranteed Roster Spot If Mets Make MLB Playoffs, Carlos Mendoza Says

Kodai Senga is not guaranteed a postseason roster spot with the New York Mets after being optioned to Triple-A Syracuse earlier this month, manager Carlos Mendoza told reporters Thursday.

When asked Thursday if Senga would "definitely" be called back up to the Mets if the club makes the postseason, Mendoza answered, "I wouldn't say 'definitely.'"

Mendoza continued, per SNY: "I think we'll have the conversations, and we'll take the best 13 guys that we feel are going to give us the best chance to win baseball games in October."

Senga is scheduled to make his second Triple-A start of the season Thursday night at Lehigh Valley.

The 32-year-old starter has struggled since returning in late July from almost a month on the injured list with a hamstring strain.

In eight starts since his July 21 return to the rotation, Senga posted a 5.90 ERA through 39.2 innings pitched, striking out 39 batters while allowing 24 walks, 43 hits and 26 earned runs.

Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns said when announcing the move to Triple-A on Sept. 5 that Senga "believes that he can be a part of a playoff run here."

"He very much wants to be a part of a playoff run here," Stearns said, per MLB.com's Anthony DiComo. "And I think we all got to the point that the best possible chance for him to do that is to take a step back, be able to work on what he needs to work on in a slightly more controlled environment and go from there."

Senga recorded a strong first start for Triple-A Syracuse last Friday, when he allowed three hits and one run through six innings while striking out eight batters against Worcester.

MLB.com's Jared Greenspan noted that Senga used his "ghost fork," a pitch famous for causing swinging strikes and with which the pitcher had recently been struggling, for six of those strikeouts.

Mendoza said in a Thursday appearance on the MLB Network that Senga was "good" in his first Triple-A appearance.

"The way he used all of his pitches, he attacked," Mendoza said. "He threw strikes, no walks. Got swing-and-misses with his split. But I think it comes down to getting ahead, and staying ahead, staying attacking hitters.

"This is another guy that we need, that we're counting on. So making another start today in Triple-A, and then we have a decision there."

Senga is eligible to return to New York starting Saturday. By then, the Mets, who entered Thursday with a 1.5-game lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks for the final NL Wild Card spot, could also have a better idea of their postseason chances.