Prospect Report: Senga Excellent In Grapefruit League Return

Image credit: Kodai Senga (Photo by Koji Watanabe - SAMURAI JAPAN/Getty Images)

Kodai Senga, RHP, Mets — After a hiatus to nurse an injured finger, Senga was back on the mound on Thursday looking no worse for wear. The righthander spun three one-run innings with five strikeouts and no walks against the Nationals. It was his first appearance since March 5. Combined between his two outings, Senga, who signed a five-year, $75 million deal with the Mets over the offseason, has pitched five innings, allowed two runs and struck out seven hitters. 

Brandon Pfaadt, RHP, D-backs — Pfaadt was scheduled to start on Wednesday night, but inclement weather made a lot of Cactus League teams shuffle their plans. Instead, Pfaadt spun the final four innings of Thursday’s game while veteran Madison Bumgarner made the start. He struck out seven over those four frames, allowed one run on three hits and walked nobody. With the exception of a clunker last time out, Pfaadt has been excellent this spring. He’s now punched out 15 and walked four in 12 innings over four outings (three starts). He’s part of a wealth of pitching the D-backs have simmering at the upper levels. 

Yainer Diaz, C, Astros — Houston played both of its high-end catching prospects—Diaz and Korey Lee—in Thursday’s game against the Cardinals. Diaz, considered the better offensive talent of the two, went 2-for-3. That ledger included a single off of big league veteran Jack Flaherty that left the bat at 109.5 mph. The figure matched Jose Abreu‘s home run for the hardest-hit ball of the contest. 

Bryan Woo, RHP, Mariners — Woo, who was one of the breakout prospects in Seattle’s system in 2022, made his Cactus League debut on Thursday. The righthander, whom the Mariners drafted in the sixth round in 2021 out of Cal Poly, struck out 84 in 57 innings between both of the Mariners’ Class A levels, then added 16 more punchouts (and a 0.84 ERA) in the Arizona Fall League. He fanned two hitters—big leaguers J.D. Davis and Wilmer Flores—in his two scoreless frames.