on july 3, he was recalled from the minors and became part of the mets' starting rotation. after a solid, if mediocre start off the dl, maine had a start that could be said to have turned around his career. with orlando hernandez originally slated to start against the houston astros, early rain caused the mets to put in maine instead. he pitched a complete game shutout. that start continued a scoreless innings streak. maine pitched a scoreless inning in relief, and then 22 scoreless innings over three starts, recording two wins and a no decision over that span. after his second scoreless outing, mets manager willie randolph designated maine as the rotation's fifth starter over higher-ranking prospect mike pelfrey.