Costly error dooms Kodai Senga, Mets in loss to the Marlins

Francisco Lindor committed two errors on Tuesday - he committed 12 in all of 2024

Michael Baron

Apr 02, 2025

What’s up with the Mets? ⚾

The Mets lost to the Marlins 4-2 in Miami on Wednesday (box | highlights)
Kodai Senga started for the Mets, and allowed two runs after throwing just four pitches in the first inning - Kyle Stowers hit a two-run home run to put the Mets in an immediate 2-0 hole
Francisco Lindor committed two errors - a harmless one in the first but a costly one in the fourth which ultimately cost the Mets the two deciding runs of the game after Graham Pauley drove in two runs with a double
Lindor did drive in a run with an RBI single, his first hit of the season
Max Kranick saved the bullpen with three shutdown innings of relief
Luisangel Acuña doubled and Brandon Nimmo homered on what was a generally quiet night for the Mets bats against Sandy Alcantara and the Marlins bullpen

Injury Updates 🏥

LHP Sean Manaea (oblique) suffered a setback during his rehab and has been shutdown for an additional two weeks. He recently received a PRP injection in the oblique
INF Jeff McNeil (oblique) is taking swings at 80-85 percent
RHP Paul Blackburn (knee inflammation) began his throwing progression this week and is moving ahead well

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Play of the Game 😩

After committing just 12 errors in 2024, Francisco Lindor committed two in the first four innings of Tuesday’s game against the Marlins. The first one ended up being inconsequential but this one in the fourth inning ultimately helped create two unearned runs, which was too much for the Mets to overcome against Sandy Alcantara and the Marlins bullpen.

Today’s Game 🗓️

Match-up: Mets (2-3) at Marlins (3-3)

Where: loanDepot Park — Miami, FL

Starters: RHP Clay Holmes (0-1, 3.86 ERA) vs. RHP Connor Gillispie (0-1, 5.40 ERA)

When: 4:40 PM ET

Where to Watch: SNY

Notes: Francisco Lindor’s costly error, Kodai Senga’s up and down night, and the value of Max Kranick ✍️

That was a frustrating evening for the Mets, wasn’t it?

There are a few things to unpack from last night’s game, so I am going with my notes format today just because I have my thoughts and ideas divided up into three (obvious) parts…

Oh no, Lindor!

The errors were brutal and a bit unfocused, and the second one of the day simply cost the Mets the game in the fourth. Of course, if Kodai Senga makes a few extra pitches to pick him up, maybe the inning doesn’t go that way. And he allowed a two-run double, allowing Miami to re-take the lead in the fourth inning.

They were uncharacteristic, to say the least, although the first one was a rocket hit right at him, and those will often get booted, even by the best, which we all know Lindor is. But even he had a look of “oh come the f*** on, man!” on his face after he missed that easy one in the fourth. He makes that play in his sleep.

Look, it happens. And when the team is up against one of the best in Sandy Alcantara, it’s difficult to overcome, and Senga - who had a rollercoaster of a day to begin with - was not able to make a pitch when he had to. Lindor is a great player on a Hall of Fame trajectory. Even the best have bad days.

Reading Kodai Senga…

The start of his game was alarming. He didn’t have a whole lot on his fastball in the first inning, and four pitches in the game he had allowed two runs. There didn’t seem to be a lot of conviction behind those pitches to the first two batters of the game, and he paid the price for teeing a couple of pitches up.

But then he got in the zone and looked really strong in innings two and three. The velocity ticked up, his swing-and-miss rate on the ghost fork ended up at 57 percent on the night, and there were general signs he is on the upward trajectory coming out of this five-inning outing.

There’s still work to do though. He needs to find crispness and consistency end-to-end, come up with better quality strikes to get out of jams, and, in Tuesday’s case, pick up Lindor who simply had a brutal night behind him.

But we knew coming in, especially after the Mets pushed him back as far as they could in the rotation to get him ready, that this is going to be a work-in-progress for Senga. He has made one true start in the big leagues since September 2023. Last year was a toilet flush season for him, and it takes a while for those skills to sharpen, if they do at all. The good news with Senga though is his stuff doesn’t appear to be diminished. Rather, he simply needs to become more familiar with this catching crew, and just get back into a routine that cultivates success for him, which, as we have all come to learn, is another layer of complication with this pitcher.

On paper though, this was good progress. And I’ll take it as a good first step for him. They’re going to need more, though, especially after Sean Manaea suffered a setback in his recovery from an oblique strain.

And then there’s Max Kranick…

This guy has simply impressed since the moment he arrived in Port St. Lucie this past February. He has upped his game, pushed his way onto the big league roster, and is emerging as a critical reliever for this bullpen.

Last night, he was both effective and efficient in three scoreless innings of work, throwing 17 of his 22 pitches for strikes. That alone was great and impressive. But he also saved the rest of the bullpen to ensure they are all available for the club this afternoon in the series finale.

That’s a win and a save on a lost night for the club.

What about the offense?

I didn’t forget about you!

Gentlemen, come on! Let’s wake up (except for Starling Marte, Juan Soto, Luis Torrens, and Brandon Nimmo. They’re fine).

Around the League 🚩

Braves RHP Reynaldo López is on the injured list with shoulder inflammation
The Dodgers improved to 7-0 with a 3-1 win over the Braves, who are now 0-6 to start the year - Dustin May allowed one unearned run over five innings
The Yankees dropped their first game of the season with a 7-5 loss at the hands of the Diamondbacks, thanks in part to a grand slam from Eugenio Suárez
The Padres improved to 6-0 with a 7-0 win over the Guardians - Michael King struck out 11 over five innings and Jackson Merrill hit his first home run of the season
Rangers RHP Nathan Eovaldi threw just 99 pitches in a complete game, 1-0 shutout over the Reds