BOSTON -- As the sun rose on the Red Sox Empire on Monday, the clubhouse smelled strongly of soap and lemon Pledge. Less than 12 hours after Boston scrubbed Cleveland to win its second American League pennant in four seasons, gone was the sticky sweet smell of champagne and the thick aroma of cigar smoke.

It was a new day in New England, and as Colorado put away its snow shoes and prepared to board the first World Series flight in franchise history -- finally, the Rockies had a Fall Classic opponent! -- a handful of Red Sox players, coaches and manager Terry Francona reported to Fenway Park for an optional, get-the-blood-moving workout.

Kaz Matsui and the Rockies try to stay fresh with a simulated game in Colorado. (AP)

Though ace Josh Beckett will start Game 1 opposite Colorado lefty Jeff Francis, Francona was not yet ready to name the rest of his Series rotation. The way things are set up, with everyone on regular rest, the Red Sox could keep the same rotation they used in the ALCS -- Beckett, followed by right-handers Curt Schilling, Daisuke Matsuzaka and Tim Wakefield.

There were also some roster issues to discuss, one of them undoubtedly being whether to carry erstwhile closer and now shaky setup man Eric Gagne.

Also, the question of not having a designated hitter for Games 3, 4 and 5 in Colorado probably will have David Ortiz oiling up his first baseman's glove, but that cuts No. 2 hitter Kevin Youklis out of the lineup.

"There are some things we need to think about," Francona said. "It's a little bit rushed right now."

Among the topics for discussion, Francona said, would be "what we think puts us in the best position to win. Health, who we're playing, where we're playing, the scouting report."

The Red Sox are vaguely familiar with the Rockies, having hosted them in a series in Fenway Park in June, when Colorado took two of three games, and having distant memories of watching the Rockies in the NL playoffs a month or two ago -- or whenever it was that the Rockies clinched.

"It reminds me a lot of last year, when we went through Minnesota at almost the same time (in June)," Francona said. "I remember they swept us and we were talking afterwards. I said, 'Their record doesn't match up with how they just played.' Then they got real hot and went on a great run.

"The Rockies, it was kind of similar. You look at their record at the time ... and they had just come from New York or were just going to New York, and I remember thinking, 'Wow, this record doesn't ... I don't see ... this team looks too good.'"

Francona continued: "Sometimes teams gel and they feel real good about themselves and it is kind of amazing how you can play when you start playing with confidence. I think they are the ultimate example of that.

"They've been on one of the most incredible streaks in major league baseball history."

Yeah, well, the Red Sox haven't been on too bad of a streak, either, roaring back from a 3-1 deficit to stomp Cleveland in three consecutive games by the aggregate score of 30-5.

That, combined with the fact that Beckett will take his 3-0, 1.17 postseason ERA into Game 1 Wednesday, has the Red Sox feeling pretty good.

Each of these teams is riding one of those rare and inexplicable streaks that not only comes along once or twice in a career, but leaves players reluctant even to attempt to dissect it.

How, exactly, did the Red Sox dig themselves out of that hole against Cleveland?

"I don't know, man," said second baseman Dustin Pedroia, one of just a handful of Red Sox to show up at Fenway on Monday. "It was fun. Nobody got down on each other. We knew that if we won a game in Cleveland, we'd have a chance.

"Then Josh won that game and we all jumped on his back."

And the rest is history, placed carefully on the shelf as a nice bookend to the Miracle of 2004, when Boston became the first team to come back from a 3 games to 0 deficit in an LCS.

Monday, though, was about what's going to happen the rest of the way this fall, not what has happened.

No doubt, the Rockies will spend much of Tuesday's workout day in Fenway -- they were scheduled to arrive in Boston later Monday night -- discussing their nine-day layoff, longest in history for a team entering the World Series.

The Rockies played intrasquad games, hit, pitched and eventually were chased indoors over the weekend by an October snowstorm in Denver.

Not exactly the optimal way to simulate facing Game 1 starter Beckett.

"We're going to have to find a way to score a few runs and hope Jeff (Francis) can match him," Rockies outfielder Matt Holliday said before leaving Denver. "It's going to be a challenge. He's a great pitcher and he's got great postseason experience. I think it will be a fun matchup. I'm excited about it."

Maybe the layoff will affect Colorado's timing, but the Red Sox aren't planning on it.

"They're playing great," outfielder J.D. Drew said. "They have some very dangerous hitters. They're a young club with veteran leadership."

Said backup catcher Doug Mirabelli: "Those guys came together a lot like this team has come together, doing what they need to do in big situations. When a team does that, it makes it tough."

For their part, the Red Sox will intensify their preparation on Tuesday -- by which time their clubhouse will likely still smell of soap, and their cell phones will still be chirping like crickets. Pedroia said he received 39 text messages alone overnight Sunday.

"People I don't even know were jumping on the bandwagon thinking they taught me how to hit," he said.

Drew said he got "a lot" of phone calls from family and friends.

"They were congratulating me, everybody," he said. "It's fun to be a part of it, and to do it in this city in front of these fans made it all the more special."