OK, Really, What is Wrong With John Maine?

John Maine is not the same pitcher he was in the first half of 2007, and he hasn't been for a while.

His stuff looks great at times, like on May 7th against the Dodgers, 8.1 innings of 4 hit, 1 run ball, but that is the rare exception these days.

In his last four outings, Maine has allowed 17 earned runs in 19 innings, an 8.05 ERA.

John Maine has gotten an out only 4 times in the 7th inning this year....is the problem physical?

"I'm just struggling right now in all aspects," Maine said. "I can't throw strikes, I walked too many people and they're getting timely hits against me. All around, I'm struggling."

John Maine often starts out games with a few innings of shutout ball, in fact he holds the opposition to a sterling .193 batting average the first time through the lineup....those numbers get worse the second time around, usually compounding after one guy gets on and Maine gives up a walk or two...is the problem mental?

"I don't know what it is," he said. "I'm working hard between starts and I'm throwing good bullpens. But when I get out there, little things here and little things there are just hurting me."

Here's how he fared in the first and second half of 2007:

 I Split  G  GS GF W  L  S CG SHO   IP  ERA   H  R  ER HR  BB SO HBP
+-+------------+---+--+--+--+--+--+--+---+-----+------+---+---+---+-
1st Half 17 17  0 10  4  0  0   0 109.2 2.71 85 34  33 10  40 93   0
2nd Half 15 15  0  5  6  0  1   1  81.1 5.53 83 56  50 13  35 87   5 

When last season ended for Maine, he had one of the great starts in Mets history, 1 hit in 7 2/3 innings, no runs allowed and 14 Ks, right in the thick of the pennant race when the team needed him to be a stopper....it was huge.

I was hoping for a more consistent 2008 from Maine...what we've gotten is a pitcher in trouble who has gotten progressively worse as the season has gone on.

Here are his 2008 month by month stats:

 I Split G  GS W  L  S CG SHO   IP    ERA   H   R   ER HR  BB IBB  SO
+-+------------+---+--+--+--+--+--+--+---+-----+------+---+---+---+--+
Apr/Mar  5  5  2  2  0  0   0  27.2   3.58  26  11  11  3  17   0  23
May      6  6  3  2  0  0   0  36.1   3.72  28  17  15  3  13   0  31
June     6  6  3  2  0  0   0  34     4.24  37  19  16  3  12   1  26
July     3  3  0  1  0  0   0  15     6.60   8  11  11  2  12   1  18  

So the question remains....what is wrong with John Maine? Is it physical? Mental? Or maybe, and this is something no Met fan wants to think about....

John Maine's first half of 2007 was a bit more luck than skill, and he is a back end of the rotation guy who can give you the occassional great start.

Sure hope that last statement is wrong.