The Mets made it Kodai Senga official signing Saturday night, confirming the Japanese-born pitcher agreed to a five-year deal.
As first reported by SNY’s Andy Martino, Senga’s deal is worth $75 million over the contract’s five-year deal. The Mets also confirmed that Senga has a player opt-out clause after the 2025 season, but the overall deal runs through 2027.
“Kodai has a championship pedigree and has excelled on the brightest of stages,” Mets Owner, Chairman and CEO Steve Cohen said in a statement. “We are very excited to welcome Kodai to our Mets family in Queens.”
Senga, 29, spent the last 11 seasons in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball with the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks. He went 87-44 with a 2.59 ERA and 1,252 strikeouts (10.3 K per 9) while winning six Japan Series titles since his debut in 2012, including four straight championships from 2017-2020.
The right-hander features a four-pitch arsenal including a cutter, slider, splitter (considered his best strikeout pitch), and a fastball that averages around 96 mph. Those attributes helped Senga go 11-6 with a 1.94 ERA), 156 strikeouts, 1.06 WHIP and a 0.4 HR/9 rate in 22 starts in 2022 with the Hawks.
Senga missed some time in 2021 due to elbow soreness and COVID, and it’s hard to know how Senga will transition to the major leagues, as league executives told SNY contributor John Harper.
Despite that, the Mets believe they found the middle-of-the-rotation arm behind Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer to get them to that next level.
“Kodai has been on our radar for a number of years,” Mets GM Billy Eppler said in a statement. “I can’t thank Steve and Alex enough for their commitment to our fans and winning. Kodai has had exceptional success in his career, including helping lead his team to four consecutive Japan Series titles. We’re thrilled to add someone with his ability to our rotation.”
Senga will become the 14th Japanese-born player to appear in at least one game for the Mets, the most by any major league team.