Piniella considering moving Soriano in lineup

Feb 16, 2009 - 10:36 PM MESA, Arizona (Ticker) -- Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella is considering moving slugger Alfonso Soriano from his customary leadoff spot.

Soriano is not the prototypical leadoff hitter, but Piniella kept him atop the lineup each of the past two seasons. Soriano's .329 career on-base-percentage is below average for a leadoff hitter.

On Monday, Piniella did not discount Soriano moving to the middle of the order.

"We've got a combination of Derrek (Lee), (Milton) Bradley and (Aramis) Ramirez," Piniella said. "You know what - I'm not going to throw out the possibility of throwing Soriano into that mix. We can play around a little bit with that this spring."

Piniella said he talked to Soriano about a possible move in January.

"(Soriano) said, 'Lou, you can do whatever you want,'" Piniella said. "To me, he's still my leadoff hitter. I love him in the leadoff spot, I like him in the leadoff spot.

"Look, we can see how it looks. We've got plenty of time in the spring to see where things shake out."

Soriano is expected to report on Tuesday with the rest of the Cubs' position players. Soriano hit .280 with 29 home runs and 75 RBI in 109 games last season.