Cubs may get a big boost at second base

After shooting his bow and arrow this winter, Mike Fontenot made it his target to get stronger so he can start at second base.

Aaron Miles signed with the Cubs this off-season determined to win some playing time and perhaps stick it to his former club, the St. Louis Cardinals.

Those lofty goals seem well within reach for this determined pair. About the only thing neither guy can do to reach those goals is get any taller.

Both Fontenot and Miles check in at 5-feet-8, and when either pairs with shortstop Ryan Theriot (5-11), they'll give the Cubs one of the most diminutive double-play combos in the, ahem, "big" leagues.

That shouldn't matter.

Fontenot, 28, is coming off his first full season in the majors, and it was a good one. He batted .305 with 9 homers, 22 doubles and an on-base percentage of .395 in 119 games.

Miles, a 32-year-old veteran, had a career year with the rival Cardinals, putting up an OBP of .355 to go along with a batting average of .317.

These two mighty mites figure to share time at second base, with Miles sliding over to short to give Theriot an occasional break.

The opportunity for both players arose when the Cubs traded popular infielder-outfielder Mark DeRosa to the Cleveland Indians on New Year's Eve.

"I was surprised when I saw the trade," Fontenot said. "It'll be fun for us. I always like moving around. I like taking balls everywhere. It's like they always say, competition's good for the team. It's good for the players to get the best out of them."

Miles might be coming here with a chip on his shoulder - and daring the Cardinals to knock it off - after St. Louis failed to tender him a contract in the off-season.

"The Cubs showed a lot of interest in me from the get-go, and I had a couple other teams that were really interested," he said. "In the end, I picked the best chance for me to be on a winning team and the best situation for me. I want to win, and I think I'm in a good spot."

Despite the similarity in size, Fontenot and Miles bring different skill sets to the Cubs. Miles is a switch hitter who came up with the White Sox in 2003 and has been a singles and doubles hitter.

Fontenot has surprising pop for a small player, as he slugged .514 last year. He came to camp this year looking stronger than ever.

"Couple weeks after we were done, I was in the backyard shooting my bow and arrow and kind of felt shaky," he said. "I said, 'I got to get in the weight room.' I've been working out ever since, my usual thing.

"Seventy pounds I had to pull back (on the bow). When I was trying to be steady with it, I was shaking a little bit. I felt like I needed to get a little bit stronger, a little more stability there."

Cubs manager Lou Piniella often refers to Fontenot as "Little Fontenot." Radio analyst Ron Santo calls him "Little Babe Ruth" because of his ability to provide pop from what some consider popgun size.

"I think a lot of it is just God-given ability," he said when asked how he generates such power. "I try to stay in the weight room. I've always had pretty decent bat speed, so I think that has a lot to do with it."

Miles won't hit the ball far. He hopes to play steadily in the field and continue the on-base surge he found last year. Like Fontenot, he doesn't appear to mind the competition.

"The type of player I am, I've only been in a situation where I've got to go out and win a job," he said of his career, which also included parts of two years with the Colorado Rockies. "I know the better I play, the more I'm going to play. Really, that's been the way I've had to deal with it my whole career. It's nothing new.

"That's what I'm prepared to do, go out and win a job and win a spot on this team."

Both Fontenot and Miles have taken grounders on the left side of the infield this spring in Arizona, with Miles saying he has six gloves, just in case he has to play some outfield.

And of that rivalry between his former team, the Cardinals, and the Cubs, he knows all about it after three years by the Arch.

"It's an awesome rivalry," he said. "It's great. You wake up the day of a Cubs-Cardinals game and you know it's an event. It takes a little away from the fact that we come do this every day and the monotony of the every day, day in and day out. It puts a little playoff atmosphere in the game. I'm sure both sides love it."