PHILADELPHIA — Would-be New York Mets ace starter Kodai Senga, who in his one appearance all season in July managed to get to one out in the sixth inning against the Atlanta Braves before retiring for the remainder of the regular season, was named Friday as the starter for Game 1 of the National League Division Series against the Phillies. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza made the surprise announcement, without making much of his team’s injury issues and heavy use of what bullpen there is left after getting his team through a stunning drive for the playoffs and an even more shocking comeback in the ninth inning of Game 3 of the Wild Card Thursday night against Milwaukee. Senga, 31, was 12-7 with a 2.98 ERA in his first Mets season in 2023 and was a strong Rookie of the Year candidate. He was expected to be the Mets’ top starting pitcher, but had injury issues in his triceps and calf muscles during the season. “He’s been in Florida throwing, facing hitters,” Mendoza said. “We have a plan, but we’re going to go out there, watch him closely and go from there. But he’s ready to go and that’s why we went with him in Game 1. … He’s excited, and said right away when we talked to him that he was ready to go. “We always had hopes” of a return, Mendoza added, “but it’s been the whole year. What made us feel comfortable with this decision was he was the one that wanted the baseball.” That was by far the biggest surprise of series eve, though Phillies manager Rob Thomson offered up a mild surprise by saying Cristopher Sanchez would start Game 2 on Sunday at Citizens Bank Park ahead of Aaron Nola. Part of the reason, Thomson indicated, was that he liked Nola for Game 3 in New York Tuesday. “Just looking at playing the Mets, going into Citi Field, I think it’s going to be a pretty hostile environment,” Thomson said. “And looking at Sanchez’ home (vs.) road splits, I just thought it was really the smartest thing to do.”