--RHP Kevin Gregg has recovered fine from minor offseason knee surgery, the Cubs officials said. They also said they'll go easy on him during fielding drills and be cautious with Gregg moving from side to side.

--OF Kosuke Fukudome will not join the Cubs until after Team Japan is done in the World Baseball Classic. The Asian teams open WBC play overseas, but Cubs GM Jim Hendry said the Cubs have monitored Fukudome's progress all winter and that they'll have scouts in Asia watching the early games. Fukudome's offense collapsed in the second half of last season, causing the Cubs to sign free agent RF Milton Bradley. Fukudome is expected to share time in center field with Reed Johnson.

--LF Alfonso Soriano is expected to be the Cubs' leadoff man again. Talk of moving Soriano down in the order intensified after last fall's playoff collapse; Soriano is a combined 3-for-28 in the last two NL Division Series. Manager Lou Piniella notes, however, the Cubs won back-to-back division titles with Soriano as their primary leadoff man. On top of that, Soriano has a professed comfort level with batting first, and the Cubs don't seem to want to upset that.

BY THE NUMBERS: 7.08 -- RHP Carlos Zambrano's ERA in four September starts last year. One of those starts was a no-hitter.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "I wasn't expecting what we got, and I don't think anybody was. And I felt like I was run over by a Mack truck, I'll be honest with you. Never once did I feel what happened to us would happen." -- Manager Lou Piniella, on last year's playoff collapse following a 97-win regular season