But while Manuel's plan - to send lefthander J.A. Happ and righthander Joe Blanton, arguably the team's most consistent starters during the regular season, to the bullpen for the first two games of the NLDS before deciding on a Game 3 starter - might be unconventional, it is not without precedent.
And, with a bullpen that finished the season with a 3.91 ERA (tied for 13th in the majors) and blew 32 percent of its save opportunities (12th), the Phillies believe it is a necessity.
"We had some tough decisions," Manuel said, "and we want to set our pitching and our team up to give us the best possible chance of winning that we feel like."
There is no denying the role that a bullpen plays in postseason success.
Of the last 16 teams to appear in the World Series, only four finished the regular season outside the Top 10 in the majors in bullpen ERA.
Of the last 16 teams to appear in the World Series, only three finished the regular season having blown more than 30 percent of their saves.
Last year, thanks in large part to Brad Lidge's perfect 41-for-41 record in save attempts and a healthy fleet of arms in front of him, the Phillies finished second in the majors with a 3.22 bullpen ERA and third with a 76 save-completion percentage.
This year, however, they face the polar opposite. Top lefthanded reliever J.C. Romero, who allowed one run while appearing in 11 of the Phillies' 13 postseason games last year, will have season-ending elbow surgery today and miss 5 to 6 months. Righthander Chan Ho Park, who posted a 2.52 ERA in 38 relief appearances during the regular season, has a strained hamstring and will not return until after the NLDS, if at all.
