The New York Mets have had an up-and-down start to the 2023 seasons after coming in as one of the handful of favorites to win the World Series. But rookie Kodai Senga has come from Japan as advertised, going 4-1 with a 3.38 ERA in the first six big league starts. The Mets will send out Senga for the Thursday afternoon series finale against the Cincinnati Reds. When envisioning the Reds-Mets betting outlook for Thursday, it is easy to see that Senga will likely have the line in his favor against the rebuilding Reds.
Reds-Mets Betting Outlook: Kodai Senga Can Give Mets a Spark
The Reds still have not named the starter who will oppose Senga on Thursday afternoon, and sportsbooks will not release the Reds-Mets betting line until they do so. But whoever gets the ball will be the heavy underdog when going up against Senga and a Mets lineup that could break out on any given day.
Senga has struggled a bit with going deep into games but is coming off his best start since joining the Mets rotation. The 30-year-old right-hander notched the win over the Colorado Rockies last week, allowing just two runs in six innings to give the Mets a much-needed win to end a three-game skid.
In Japan, Senga’s pitching schedule usually only called on him to throw once a week rather than the once every five days MLB fans have grown accustomed to. The Mets’ brass is trying to manage Senga’s schedule a little bit better going forward. His start on Friday was the first time he took the bump since April 26.
“He definitely wants to get out there, and I certainly respect that, because he sees what the other starters are doing,” pitching coach Jeremy Hefner said, per the MLB Website. “But when you look back at his track record in Japan, he very rarely threw on five days. … If at any point we have the opportunity to give him an extra day or two, we’re going to take that opportunity.”
While it might not be as long of a rest, Senga will be coming off five days of rest on Thursday and should be able to ride the momentum from his last start against the Reds. All eyes will be on Senga on Thursday afternoon, and he can once again calm the Mets faithful who have already hit the panic button during the mediocre start to the season.
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