Cubs activate Johnson

The Cubs activated outfielder Reed Johnson from the 15-day disabled list today and optioned infielder Eric Patterson to Triple-A Iowa.

Johnson, 31, landed on the disabled list June 24 (retroactive to June 18) with lower back spasms. The right-handed hitter is batting .271 (49-for-181) with 3 home runs and 31 RBI in 56 contests for Chicago, recording a .343 on-base percentage. He has made 44 starts for the Cubs, with the club going 30-14 in those games.

Patterson, 25, has batted .237 (9-for-38) with a home run and 7 RBI in 13 games over three stints with the Cubs this season. He belted his first major league homer June 22 off the White Sox Javier Vazquez at Wrigley Field. With Iowa this season, Patterson is hitting .323 (61-for-189) with 13 doubles, 3 triples, 6 homers, 28 runs and 27 RBI in 49 games.