D'backs have leadoff power, too

PHOENIX -- Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin didn't need to be reminded that Cubs left fielder Alfonso Soriano hit 7 leadoff home runs in September.

"He's a guy you have to pick your spots and obviously be careful, because the first pitch of the game or the first at-bat of the game can leave the ballpark," Melvin said. "So it's a little different how you attack a leadoff hitter like that as opposed to a guy you're just trying to keep off base. We're very aware of it, and it's a dynamic most teams don't have."

The D'backs, though, do have the same kind of dynamic in leadoff man Chris Young, who led Arizona with 32 home runs.

"We kind of have the same variable with Chris Young," said Melvin. "He's led off a lot of games (with homers) and has a lot of power, too."

Follow the leader: Eric Byrnes leads the Diamondbacks in a lot of ways, on and off the field. His 83 RBI topped everyone, as did his 50 stolen bases.

Teammate Chris Young credits Byrnes' aggressiveness on the bases with helping the D'backs win a team record 32 games by 1 run.

"Watching him motivates you," Young said. "If he can steal 50 bases, you think you can steal 25. You see the difference it can make getting that extra base. Little things like that matter when you play as many 1-run games as we do."

Young was second on the team to Byrnes with 27 steals.

Good to go: Diamondbacks 20-year-old rookie outfielder Justin Upton was cleared to play after X-rays showed no break in his left hand or wrist. He was hit by a pitch in a game Sunday at Colorado.

"He will take batting practice, and I don't think it will be an issue going forward," said Bob Melvin, who will not have the right-handed Upton in tonight's starting lineup. Instead, the lefty Jeff Salazar will play against Cubs right-hander Carlos Zambrano.

Magic number: Arizona was one of only three teams in the National League to win 50 or more games at home. The D-backs won 50, one fewer than Colorado and Milwaukee.

"This is a tough place to play," left fielder Eric Byrnes said of Chase Field.

This and that: The roof at Chase Field is expected to be open for tonight's game with temperatures in the 80s. … As of Tuesday morning there were still some tickets available for Game 1.