Marshall off to a good start

MESA, Ariz. - Sean Marshall wants to be a starting pitcher. So does Chad Gaudin.

Ditto for Jeff Samardzija and Aaron Heilman.

If manager Lou Piniella tipped his hand at all Saturday, it was in the direction of Marshall.

"Look, if Sean pitches the way I anticipate and stays healthy, he's got a leg up for the fifth spot, yes," Piniella said after pitchers and catchers completed their first full day of spring workouts.

Of course, there's an eternity between now and the April 6 opener at Houston, and a lot can happen.

The Cubs will keep a close eye on established starter Rich Harden and his troublesome right shoulder. One of the candidates for the fifth spot could outpitch Marshall. And the Cubs wouldn't be averse to having Marshall start some and work some out of the bullpen with fellow lefty Neal Cotts.

"Marshall, to me, has gotten better," Piniella said. "I liked him my first year here. I liked him a whole lot better last year. One thing about Sean: We used him in different roles, and we even sent him out to Triple-A. Never once complained.

"He did what the organization wanted, and he's improved. He's gotten stronger. He's got a good feel for pitching, and I feel extremely comfortable with him in the fifth spot."

For his part, Marshall said he'd prefer to start, but he took his usual stance.

"I'm ready to go," he said. "I'm ready to go out and start some games and throw some innings and stretch my arm out.

"Hopefully they'll need me as a starter. If they need me as a reliever, like I did last year, to fill some gaps, to help the team win, to help bring us back to the playoffs, I'll do that."

Scaled back: Last year ace pitcher Ryan Dempster wasn't even in the building before he predicted the Cubs would win the World Series. That earned Dempster national headlines. On Saturday, he was slightly less bold.

"I boldly predict that we're going to have a breakfast spread tomorrow and peanut butter and jelly for lunch; I'm pretty sure that's going to happen," he said.

"It's (winning the Series) is one of the things that we all think and feel. I said it at the time, and I stood by it. I liked our team a lot, and I really like our team a lot this year."

Happy to be here: Reliever Jeff Stevens, 25, is one of three minor-league pitchers the Cubs got in their December trade with Cleveland for popular infielder-outfielder Mark DeRosa.

"From what I've heard, everyone in Chicago loved DeRosa," Stevens said. "He was obviously a really good player, but anytime you're traded, I think it's a good thing. That means somebody somewhere likes you.

"So I think it's a good thing. Coming into a new organization, I think the important thing is establishing yourself and showing everybody what you can do. So I'm going to be really focused this spring training."