What goes up....

The 10-game winning streak the Mets have been on has finally come to an end. It's obvious, if you watch the team, that there was no good reason for them to win that many in a row in the first place. Their tenth win in that streak was indicative of why the team struggles so often. Johan Santana went 5 innings and got hit hard, while the bullpen coughed up the lead as soon as they had one. The Mets lack any real innings-eaters, with the possible exception of Santana. This lack of depth from the starters leads to a severe strain on the bullpen and that will lead to them breaking down before the season ends. The game following that win was 5-2 loss that showcased the flaws in their number 3 starter: John Maine. Maine has good low-90's velocity with good movement on his fastball and a good curve, when he's throwing it for strikes. His issue, and one that seems to creep up on him during each season, is that he gets wild with his pitches when he starts letting his left shoulder swing out too far. Maine needs to throw from over his right shoulder, not from his side. When he's on top of the ball, it has better movement and will sink instead of staying level. When he pitches more from his side, the ball levels off or starts rising, allowing it to either enter the hitter's wheel-house or miss the strike-zone completely. Anyway, that was what happened to him yesterday, he couldn't find the strike-zone.

Unless this team can keep the offense going consistently and somehow find some depth from its starting rotation, they will find themselves out of contention by September.