Which Hamels will emerge in 2010?

It’s a simple question, really.

Will Cole Hamels pitch like he did in 2009? Or will he pitch like he did in 2008 and in prior seasons?

No one really knows what to expect. Then again, no one really knew what to expect last year. Every game that ‘King Cole’ stepped on to the mound, we as Phillies fans watched closely, hoping and even believing that this would be the game where Hamels got his stuff back – no matter how poorly he had pitched in his previous starts.

But even his money pitch – his changeup– was being hit by opposing teams.

No one will ever forget the horrendous 7.58 ERA that Hamels possessed during the 2009 postseason, just like no one will forget that the 26 year-old southpaw could not get out of the fifth inning during the entire playoff run.

But, like Brad Lidge in 2009, Hamels got a pass.

2008 may go down as the most memorable year in Philadelphia sports history for my generation – a generation that was either born after the last professional team in Philadelphia was crowned champions, or simply was too young to remember the 76ers riding the floats in 1983 or the Tug McGraw throwing his glove up in celebration in 1980.

And again, like Lidge, Hamels had as much to do with this as anyone. Just like saving 48 games in 48 save situations, going 4-0 with a sub-2.00 ERA and having your team win every game you start in will give you a pass.

As angry as Phillies fans got at Lidge and Hamels at certain times of last season – primarily the postseason – most still gave them a pass.

For the most part, I did.

Lidge can sit out the entire 2010 season and I would still believe that every player that was given up in the trade to bring him to Philadelphia was worth it. Lidge can blow as many saves as he did in 2009, and I still believe that every penny of the $36 million contract he signed last May was worth it, if not just for the memory of hearing Harry Kalas call the final out in 2008, or to watch Shane Victorino dive into a pile of players that were just crowned as the best in all of Major League Baseball.

But the hangover is over.

More than 18 months have passed since the Phillies rode down Broad Street as kings of the city. The best pitcher in baseball has been brought in. A team that advanced to the World Series just one season ago has upgraded itself and possibly added the final pieces to the puzzle that may bring a repeat of 2008 to the city of Philadelphia.

And because of those expectations, a subpar season will not fly will fans. Another pass will not be granted to Cole Hamels (or anyone else, for that matter).

If the Phillies are going to live up to said expectations, they will need the 2008 World Series MVP to become a dependant number-two behind Roy Halladay.

Hamels worked on his curveball. He added a cutter and he entered Spring Training with a better mindset. Known for often losing his cool and getting frustrated at himself, Hamels has appeared more focused up until now. His fastball velocity seems to be up and his attitude appears to be improved.

But none of what he did during the offseason and in March matters unless he can repeat that on the mound in April…in May…in June…And all the way up until his final start this fall.

Hamels is the most pivotal part of this Phillies team. Their success largely rests on his shoulders. He has proved before that he can handle this kind of pressure, but never as the number-two.

Because of this, the main question for the Phillies shouldn’t be whether or not they should have let Cliff lee go this past offseason. It will be whether or not the Phillies still have two “number-one” pitchers on the roster.

When Lee was traded, many fans said they did not. It’s now Hamels’ job to prove them wrong.

And Wednesday will be his first chance at doing so.

The Eagles had their 15 minutes; the Phillies will have their seven months.

On the eve one of the most anticipated seasons in Phillies history, the same day as the Flyers won a late-season, must-win game over one of the league's best, and the same night that many families were polishing off their dinner plates after a holiday feast, the front office that calls itself the "gold standard" once again found a way to get in the spotlight.

But how long will it last?

In what has already been called a public relations-timely move, the Philadelphia Eagles traded away their franchise quarterback just 16-and-a-half hours before Roy Halladay took the mound for the first meaningful time in a Phillies uniform. They traded him to a divisional rival that shocked not only the city, but the entire country.

The Eagles did the only thing possible that could have overshadowed what will be the first of a number of games that should most likely conclude well past a regular season finale with the Atlanta Braves on October 3.

And while Monday's back page of the Daily News will most certainly focus on the most famous athlete to ever wear number-five in the city of Philadelphia, it will only be a matter of time -- possibly even as short as it takes to finish nine innings of baseball -- before the Phillies will be back in the limelight.

Three years. Three consecutive division championships. Two World Series visits and one crowing as the "world champions of baseball."

A Cy Young winner, two former MVPs, an arm in center field that could rival Jim Edmonds' glove and the best second baseman in baseball.

A deceivingly fast bearded man in right field and an All-Star fan favorite in left. A World Series MVP pitcher, an All-Star closer, a .300-plus hitting third baseman and a catcher that, while it took some time, earned the respect of almost every Phillies fan by the end of 2008.

Add the rest of the 25-man roster and some up-and-coming minor leaguers and you have the recipe for arguably the best Phillies team in franchise history. You have a group of ballplayers that not only should, but undeniably will put fear into any team that steps onto a baseball field to face the reigning National League champions.

The Eagles can trade up for the number-one pick tomorrow. They can fire the current coach and hire a new one. Hell, they can announce a possible move of the team. But until Citizens Bank Park stops filling up for nearly every home game, Jeffrey Lurie's team will remain second-rate in this town.

A Super Bowl will change things. That goes without saying. But don't forget -- it's called the "Fall Classic" because it's played in the fall. By then, Philadelphia fans will just be getting a taste of what the new era in Eagles' football will look like.

So, while the baseball season may have began with a "what the f***" feeling for Philadelphia sports fans, hopefully, another "World f***ing champions" moment is the way it ends.

Philadelphia will be painted red, not green, for the next six-to-seven months. Some teams -- one in particular -- will just have to accept that.