Yankees-Angels starting rotations

Starting rotations
  New York Yankees

For the second year in a row, Moose logged some late-season time on the disabled list. The pit stop helped him last season, when he pitched some of his best ball down the stretch. Now the jury is still out: In two starts since being shut down with elbow tendinitis, he has been very good and very bad. He will be making his fifth straight Game 1 start, going back to the 2003 Division Series.

Aaron Small has the spotless record that prompts double-takes, but Chacon has been the more remarkably consistent midseason import. Leaving Colorado for low altitude and high expectations immediately, and impressively, turned around his game. It is increasingly hard to believe he had hit town with 16 losses in his last 18 decisions.

He turned out to be needed every step of the regular-season way, but this is really why the Yankees wanted him, to be the short-series ruler they lacked last October. He peaked toward the assignment: 6-0 in eight starts since mid-August, conserving energy and stress on his back by not maxing out on every hitter.

The Yankees have repeatedly tried to displace Small from their rotation -- as if fearful his magic has run its course -- but every time they do, he lights it up in long relief and they let him back in. Although he got plenty of run support to build the early part of his 10-0 record, there has been nothing fluky about his performance.

  Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

Colon was in Cy Young form, back to being the staff ace and workhorse in 2005. He no longer throws as consistently hard as he used to, but it's all relative, because he can still reach 97 with the fastball. He is probably a more complete pitcher than he used to be, relying more on a two-seam fastball, getting more groundouts and fewer strikeouts.

This became a breakthrough season for Lackey because he mastered the art of changing speeds. He stopped trying to simply overpower hitters and relied on better command. He is now a more mature pitcher, and a more difficult pitcher to hit.

Washburn has been bothered by tendinitis in his left forearm. But if he is healthy, he is still a very difficult lefty to solve. He does not have as much velocity as he did earlier in his career, but he has compensated with better command and a greater variety of pitches.

A choice that covers the pitching spectrum, although both could start if Washburn is unable to pitch. Byrd is the finesse pitcher of this rotation. He has been more than getting by for some time with superb command and effective change of speeds. Santana is another power arm whose emergence came at precisely the right time for the Angels.