The moment Derek Lowe signed his four-year deal with the Braves, John Maine became that much more vital to the Mets.
Maine is ready for the challenge. This is a different Maine the Mets will see in spring training. Most importantly, he is throwing pain-free, following end-of-September arthroscopic surgery to shave down a large bone spur in his right shoulder socket.
There is something else Maine wants you to know. He is not just that happy-go-lucky, crossword-solving right-hander that he has so often been portrayed as.
“I’m a little meaner than people think,” Maine said. “And I’m not as naive as people think. As clichéd as it is, I can’t stand losing. It drives me crazy. I hate losing more than I like winning. It really aggravates me when things don’t go all that great.”
Yes, it’s been a tough two years for Maine. After two straight nightmare finishes and his Mets being labeled choke artists by Phillies ace Cole Hamels, Maine offered this: “They won the World Series and I say, “Congratulations.’ Let them celebrate it, but just don’t worry about what’s going on in New York. We’ll take care of it. And if I can remember; we beat them head-on last year, didn’t we?”
Yes, the Mets did win the season series against the Phillies, 11-7, but to shut up the world champions, the Mets have to take care of business in the NL East and then the postseason. To do that, the Mets need a healthy Maine.
Maine, 27, already is throwing two bullpen sessions a week and is mixing in long toss.
“I’m throwing five, six times a week,” he said, promising he will be ready to go once spring training starts. He will even arrive early to get a head start.
“The last few years it really hurt pitching,” Maine said. “Gradually, after each start it got worse, and finally, last year, I couldn’t even throw between starts, so it was really hard to deal with. But now everything is going great. When I get down there I still have to talk to the doctors, but as far as I’m concerned, I’m ready to go from Day 1.”
Maine wants to be that pitcher who allowed two runs or less in seven straight starts from April 10 to May 13 last season, not the sore-shouldered thrower who allowed eight runs in his final start, Aug. 23, and won just two of his final nine starts.
With the Mets falling short of the wild-card Brewers by one game, a healthy Maine would have made the difference.
“It was frustrating,” Maine said. “Here I was just sitting and watching. As far as me not being able to do anything, that really, really hurt. I basically missed six weeks and we lost by a game, so I think I could have made up one game there, and that’s the hardest thing about it.”
Maine has not really talked about it before, but he has had to overcome asthma problems and wants children with asthma to know that the situation can be remedied.
“I have exercise-induced asthma,” he said. “Especially on hot, humid days, especially when I was running a lot, I had trouble breathing. I just thought growing up that I was out of shape.”
Eventually, he was correctly diagnosed and easily managed to get the asthma under control.
“Now, in that situation I just take a puff of my inhaler and I’m good to go,” he said.
To be good to go, in so many ways, the Mets need a healthy John Maine.