Phoenix ? When the Arizona Diamondbacks look across the field at the Colorado Rockies this week, they may feel as if they’re looking into a mirror. The teams took similar routes to an unlikely destination – the NL championship series.

“We’re going to have our hands full with Arizona, a tough team,” Rockies outfielder Jeff Baker said. “We know them. They know us.”

Start with their records: Arizona won the NL West with a league-best 90-72. The Rockies, who had to defeat San Diego in a playoff to earn a wild card berth, finished 90-73.

Both clubs have built from within, and they’ve done it relatively cheaply. The Rockies entered the season with a payroll of $54.4 million, $2.4 million more than the Diamondbacks. Only four clubs had lower payrolls.

Instead of spending on free agents, both organizations committed to building through the draft.

Game 1 on Thursday night will pit dazzling starting pitchers Brandon Webb of Arizona and Jeff Francis of Colorado. Both are homegrown.

“It speaks to the good old-fashioned values of baseball: scouting and player development and building from within and being patient and taking chances and things working out,” Colorado manager Clint Hurdle said after the Rockies sweep of Philadelphia in their NL playoff series.

Inexperience can prove costly. But for the Diamondbacks and the Rockies, what they don’t know hasn’t hurt them.

Both teams started slowly this year; the Diamondbacks were 47-43 at the All-Star break, third in the NL West, 31â2 games behind San Diego. Colorado was 44-44, 51â2 games out.

The Diamondbacks and Rockies have shown a penchant for hot streaks. The Diamondbacks won 17 of 20 in July and August. The Rockies have won 17 of their last 18, the hottest streak in their 15-year history.

The only pitcher to defeat the Rockies in that stretch? Webb, who beat Francis 4-2 on Sept. 28 in Denver.

Said Colorado outfielder Brad Hawpe, “I looked at the date the other day and I don’t even know what the date is now. Things are flying by now.”