The Complete Game

As a long time Mets fan, I have little to complain about during the tenure of Willie Randolph as the Mets manager, thus far. He has seemingly pushed the right buttons and done very well. I also realize that a complete game is becoming a lost art. Still, this weekend, I saw something that I don’t understand, something that aggravated me.
John Maine was pitching a beautiful game and had a 5 to 1 lead in the eighth inning. His pitch count was fairly low and Randolph let his pitcher come to the plate to bat in the eighth. As Maine took the mound in the ninth, I (probably along with a number of Met fans) was looking forward to a complete game. I was actually excited about the possibility.
The very first batter hit a double off of Maine. In the past, when Randolph has allowed a starting pitcher to begin the ninth inning, he has given the pitcher a very short leash. I understand that and even agree with it. In this case, however, after the double was hit leading off the inning, I was surprised to see Randolph make a trip to the pitching mound.
Even if the run scored, it would have still been a 5-2 Met lead. I felt with a low pitch count and the game seemingly well in hand, Maine should have been allowed to face at least one more batter before pulling him.
As I think about the move, it still makes no sense to me. The run did eventually score. The run was charged to John Maine. The Mets did eventually win the game. Maine was not on the mound when any of this happened. Giving up a leadoff hit in the ninth does not automatically mean the pitcher is out of gas. Maybe to many fans complete games no longer mean anything. Still, I am a little bit of a throw back and would have loved to see the Mets have at least ONE complete game before the All-Star break!