Grateful Piniella returns to the dugout

ST. LOUIS - Cubs manager Lou Piniella came back Friday. He expressed appreciation to the Cubs for allowing him to take care of his mother.

He also said he was eager to get back and never would consider not coming back.

"No, none of that," he said. "I've never been a quitter in my life doing anything. I'm coming back here, and I'm going to do everything I can to help this team win baseball games. That's all I'm interested in."

Piniella missed the four-game series in San Francisco.

"I'm appreciative, first of all, that the Cubs allowed me to go home," he said. "I needed to be home. My mom was happy to see me. We got her home. She's doing a little better. Let's just keep her home.

"I'm back here now, and I'm looking forward to the Cardinals series. We've got San Diego. We've got Atlanta. Let's hope we play good baseball."

The Cubs lost three of four in San Francisco, with each loss being a 1-run game.

"I thought, actually, that the team competed very well," Piniella said. "We lost three tough games, all 1-run games. I thought the team played hard."

The Cubs entered Friday having played 42 1-run games and having a record of 13-29. The team record for games decided by 1 run is 66, in 1974.

Ramirez ready? Third baseman Aramis Ramirez took batting practice as he tested his sore left rib cage. The ailment kept him out of the final two games at San Francisco.

"If he's OK, we look forward to getting him in the lineup tomorrow," said Lou Piniella.

Blake DeWitt started at third Friday night.

More kids coming: The Cubs haven't made any announcements about September call-ups. The Class AAA Iowa team is fighting for a playoff spot and Class AA Tennessee is in the playoffs after winning the first half.

It's a good bet that pitcher Jeff Samardzija will return. Samardzija opened the season in the Cubs' bullpen, but he's had success as a starter in Iowa. He's also developed an effective cutter.

"Young kids that come up here to pitch, yeah, we'll pitch them," Lou Piniella said. "At the same time, the position players the same way. We're still trying to compete and win some baseball games. We play a lot of these teams that are in pennant contention. So we'd like to beat them and derail them, too."