"From Roy Halladay to Cliff Lee, the Phillies have made some tremendous additions in recent seasons.

Here's another one: Cole Hamels' cutter.

Hamels added the pitch to his repertoire after a disappointing 2009 season and it has clearly made a difference.

According to www.fangraphs.com, a baseball statistics and analysis Website, Hamels threw a fastball 59 percent of the time in 2009, while adding a changeup 30 percent of the time and a curveball 10 percent.

His opponents' batting average that season was a plump .273. That ranked 60th in the majors.

After consultations with everyone from Lee to Steve Carlton to pitching coach Rich Dubee and others, Hamels worked on a cutter -- a pitch that is basically a cross between a slider and a fastball and moves laterally as it reaches the hitting zone -- following the season and unveiled it in 2010.

Hamels threw 54 percent fastballs that season, 22 percent changeups, eight percent curveballs and 14 percent cutters that season. Opponents hit .237. That mark ranked 24th best in the majors.

Move on to 2011, Hamels' best yet -- he had a career-best 2.79 ERA -- in the majors."