Saturday, November 18, 2006
Mets John Maine Expands His Repertoire for Spring
Mets hurler John Maine, 25, acquired from Baltimore in the Anna Benson trade, was a major surprise when he won eight games in 90 innings with a 3.60 ERA this season. Now Maine hopes to become even better by developing a split-finger pitch to complement his 95-mph fastball, breaking ball and off-speed stuff. Maine's idea is to have an extra option when he has trouble finding the plate, enabling to increase the number of balls he throws for strikes. Maine should have a firm grasp on a spot in the rotation next spring. Anna couldn't top that if she doused her bra with Oil of Olay and touched a match to it.
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Doctor X -- the 'Baseball Medic' -- is an anonymous U.S. government trauma specialist with a Duke University sports medicine background and more than 20 years experience in emergency medicine. From time to time he considers MLB rumors, events and news reports as they pertain to baseball players' injuries, illnesses and various other disabilities, both on the field and off.
MLB Rumors editor Greg Fieg is a former sports news editor and award-winning writer whose bylines have appeared on the wires of the Associated Press and in numerous publications, including San Antonio Express-News, San Antonio Light, Houston Chronicle and Philadelphia Bulletin. He formerly was posted in various positions on the U.S.-Mexican border with Freedom Newspapers, and was a regular, independent contributor to United Press International.