"Next Page1| 2Previous PageA year ago, when acquiring Roy Halladay still was Ruben Amaro Jr.'s whimsy and Cliff Lee got traded only in fantasy leagues, the Phillies had another ace.

Remember Cole Hamels?

Last year, Hamels was everywhere. He tossed the coin at the 50-yard line before the Eagles-Giants game at the Linc, danced with Ellen DeGeneres, read the Top 10 List for David Letterman. Then, he signed a three-year, $20.5 million contract extension, moved to a 2,700-square-foot condo high atop Two Liberty Place and became the pitch man in a half-dozen commercials.

Life was good.

In 2009, Hamels got flattened by reality. Only 25, with just two above-average pitches and having slacked in his winter training program, the 2008 World Series MVP slid to mediocrity. And he caught flak in the postseason for negative body language on the mound and a poorly worded comment about being eager for his nightmarish season to end.

Through it all, Hamels is still here. He's still a member of the Phillies' starting rotation, even after a whirlwind week in which they dealt for one Cy Young Award-winning ace and ditched another in corresponding trades. And while the masses debate the decision to send Lee to Seattle in an effort to replenish a farm system further decimated by the addition of Halladay, one underlying factor played into both moves.

The Phillies' faith in Hamels is unyielding.

"Last year, most people were looking at him as a top-of-the-rotation guy," Amaro said Friday, "and that's exactly what I believe he is."

This winter, Amaro and pitching coach Rich Dubee are keeping close tabs on Hamels, and the word is he began throwing nearly a month ago. Without the television talk-show hosts requesting his reappearance, he's expected to report earlier than usual to the Phillies' training facility in Clearwater, Fla., where he and Dubee plan to work on his not-ready-for-prime-time curveball.

And during spring training, Hamels may try adding another breaking pitch, perhaps a slider, to make his fastball-changeup repertoire less predictable to hitters who have seen it the past four seasons."