Phil Sheridan: Retooled rotation is driving Phils

The great irony of last year's World Series title was that the hard-hitting Phillies really got through October on the strength of their pitching. It was like Andy Reid winning the Super Bowl with 300 rushing yards and only 10 forward passes.

The amazing thing about this year's run is that the starting pitching has been strong again but with a very different cast.

Last year: Cole Hamels and Brett Myers at the top of the rotation.

This year: Cliff Lee and Pedro Martinez.

Hamels has been puzzlingly inconsistent. Myers is out of the rotation because of injury (although he could be back in the bullpen for the World Series). Jamie Moyer is lost with an injury. In a way, Hamels has taken Moyer's slot in the rotation, while the new guys have taken the top two spots.

J.A. Happ was in the bullpen last year and has played both roles this year. Joe Blanton pitched very well last October and pretty well this October. He's about the only constant from one World Series run to the next, and that is just plain stunning.

The Phillies went into the season believing their rotation was a strength, a real factor in their chances to become the first National League team to repeat as World Series champions since the 1976 Cincinnati Reds. And they were right, except that it took a complete overhaul of that rotation in midsummer to make it happen.

In Clearwater, Fla.: Hamels was the No. 1 guy, followed by Myers, Blanton, Moyer and Chan Ho Park.

In October: Lee, Martinez, Hamels, Blanton and Happ.

That much change would normally be enough to torpedo a team's chances of repeating. You'd shrug and say the pitching just wasn't there, oh well, let's get 'em next season. But it is to the enormous credit of first-year general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. and his handpicked staff that the Phillies were able to retool on the fly and wind up back in the World Series.

By now, you may be questioning whether Martinez or Hamels is the No. 2 starter in the World Series. And the truth is, manager Charlie Manuel could go either way. But the firm belief here is that Lee should (and will) start Game 1 and Martinez should start Game 2.