So short on starting pitching that they began considering in September the option to use three starters for most, if not all, of the playoffs? Going through a World Series with the majority of the lineup struggling to hit .200?

It didn't matter. In the end, the Yankees had so many players with so much talent that inevitably someone would come through.

As Minnesota Twins manager Ron Gardenhire succinctly said as his team was being swept out of the first round by the Yankees, "Everyone is a stinking All-Star."

Still, the starting pitchers weren't exactly overwhelming. CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Andy Pettitte combined for a 4.98 earned run average, but they had nearly unhittable Mariano Rivera at the end of games.

And that meant the Yankees offense had to produce enough runs. It did, despite a lot of statistics that might not seem to add up to a World Series victory.

Hideki Matsui hit .233 with one home run through the first two rounds of the postseason but then blasted his way to World Series MVP honors by hitting .615 with three homers and eight RBI — and as designated hitter he didn't even start the three games played in Philadelphia.

Derek Jeter (.407) and Johnny Damon (.364) hit at the top of batting order, but, even counting Matsui, the other seven starters in Wednesday's clinching game ended up a combined 26-for-120 (.217) in the Series.

But five of those seven had crucial RBI in Yankees victories.

"They played better, and they always seem to get hits in certain situations," Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard said.

Mark Teixeira batted .136 for the World Series but hit the home run that woke up the Yankees in Game 2, tying that score at 1 after the Phillies had won Game 1 at Yankee Stadium.

Alex Rodriguez, who walked around the field after Wednesday's game crying, hit .250 but hurt the Phillies with a two-run homer in Game 3 that started the Yankees back from an early 3-0 deficit. His two-run single in the ninth inning won Game 4.

Jorge Posada had five hits in the Series but drove in five runs.

Nick Swisher's homer provided the winning run in Game 3. Even pitcher Andy Pettitte had an RBI single in that game.

And that's the point. On a hot streak or in a slump, the Yankees kept sending players to the plate with résumés and bats to expect to succeed.

"We know how to work hard; we know how to have fun," said left fielder Damon, who also won a World Series in 2004 with the Boston Red Sox. "It's a lot like that (Boston) team.

 Florida coach Urban Meyer believes Southeastern Conference officials missed a late hit on Tim Tebow in Saturday's game against Georgia.

Meyer said Wednesday the crew calling the game should have flagged Bulldogs linebacker Nick Williams for knocking his quarterback to the ground well after he had gotten rid of the football.

Meyer sent video of the play to Rogers Redding, the league's coordinator of officials. Meyer declined to reveal what the SEC told him, saying he didn't "want to step out of line."

Last week the SEC changed its discipline policy about coaches publicly criticizing officials, making the punishment either a fine or a suspensions and doing away with the reprimands. It was unclear whether Meyer would be fined for commenting on officiating.

Meyer told reporters on the SEC conference call the play was directly in front of the referee and should have penalized. Tebow handed off to running back Jeff Demps, took a few steps to his right and wasn't looking when Williams came unblocked off the right edge and slammed into his chest.

"That should have been a penalty in my opinion," Meyer said. "Obviously, it should have been. You've got to protect quarterbacks. That's the whole purpose. It's right in front of the referee. I'm not sure how they're going to handle that, but ... that was one of the plays we did send in."

Meyer didn't mention the play until asked about it Wednesday, possibly trying to avoid drawing punishment from the league. He also prefaced his comments by saying he has "great respect" for SEC officials and the way the league handles complaints.

The SEC decided to stop handing down reprimands for ripping officials last month after three coaches in less than a week were reprimanded.

Commissioner Mike Slive was given full discretion by the league's athletic directors and presidents to hand out the punishment. He will determine the amount of fines and lengths of suspensions on a case-by-case basis.

The SEC's officiating -- and public complaints by Tennessee's Lane Kiffin, Mississippi State's Dan Mullen and Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino -- has drawn plenty of unwanted attention for the league.

An officiating crew was suspended after it called penalties the league said were not supported by video evidence in the LSU-Georgia game Oct. 3 and the Arkansas-Florida game Oct. 17. The SEC publicly announced the suspensions, an unprecedented move by the conference.

When told of Meyer's comments Wednesday, Kiffin wondered what would happen to his league counterpart.

"Urban Meyer? Criticized the officials?," Kiffin said. "That will be interesting. We'll see."