Wood straightens out his bullpen repertoire
The former staff ace, who threw an encouraging bullpen session Monday, plans to stick primarily with a fastball-slider repertoire as a reliever, sprinkling in the occasional changeup.
Wood's curveball has been blamed for some of his elbow and shoulder injuries over the years, but it's an easy pitch for him to shelve as a reliever, considering it's not his best pitch and he needs fewer pitches anyway if he has to pitch only an inning or two at a time.
''That would be a pitch I would usually use later in the game as I got tired,'' he said. ''I probably won't use it as much.''
Nursing a chest bruise from a hot-tub accident, Wood threw close to a full bullpen session but is at least a few more days away from catching up to the other pitchers in camp.
''Getting there,'' said Wood, who had thrown a light, 10-pitch mound session two days earlier. ''Once we get the chest issue completely out of the way, it should be fine.''
Most of the pitchers are scheduled for one more bullpen session Wednesday before facing hitters in live batting practice. Wood likely will throw an extra session or two beyond that before joining the other pitchers on a live BP schedule.
''I watched him specifically today, and he threw well,'' manager Lou Piniella said. ''The ball comes out of his hand real easy. He's got some good life to it.''
MUCH ADO ABOUT SCUFFING: Major-league officials are scheduled to stop by Fitch Park on Thursday to go over several new rules in effect for 2007, including ejections for position players deemed to have scuffed balls during games; 12-second deadlines for pitchers to throw the ball when the bases are empty; and disallowing catches of pop flies by fielders who step into the dugout to make the play.
''I don't think those are going to change the game much,'' first baseman Derrek Lee said. ''Maybe the fly ball. But I can't remember one time stepping into the dugout to catch a ball. And I don't even know how to scuff the ball.''
QUOTABLE: Closer Ryan Dempster on reliever Will Ohman's suggestion that the Cubs play AC/DC's ''Thunderstruck'' at Wrigley Field whenever Dempster enters the game for a save opportunity:
''They can play Frank Sinatra for all I care. I just want to pitch.''
SHORT HOPS: Practice was cut short Monday when an already cool day turned rainy late in the workout. ''Guys have been working hard. It's not going to hurt them at all,'' Piniella said of the lost time.
• • Position players aren't scheduled to start formal workouts until today, but so many have shown up early and begun working in recent days that Piniella gave them Monday off in anticipation of today's official start. Every projected regular except third baseman Aramis Ramirez has already arrived.
• • Shortstop Cesar Izturis, who missed much of the final six weeks of last season with a pulled hamstring, said he's 100 percent healthy.
• • Blessed with at least a few pitchers who can handle the bat well, Piniella said one of the things he hopes to have pitchers do this year is ''slash bunt'' to put more pressure on the fielders.
''Instead of just standing there and bunting, let's get the game moving,'' he said. ''We'll find out who can do this and who can't.''