Pitchers go to work in playoff tuneup

CINCINNATI -- The Cubs dropped their series finale 8-4 Sunday to the Cincinnati Reds, but that hardly concerned manager Lou Piniella.

"We're ready for the postseason," said Piniella, whose National League Central champions finished 85-77 in his first year as manager. "We're healthy. We got a lot of people work today."

The Cubs gave starting pitcher Ted Lilly just enough work as he prepares to start Game 2 of the division series Thursday at Arizona. Carlos Zambrano opens for the Cubs on Wednesday at Chase Field.

Lilly worked 2 innings of perfect ball, throwing only 21 pitches.

"It was nice to get a little work in," said Lilly, who is 15-8 with a 3.83 ERA. "Once you get started, I really didn't want to come out, but I understand what we're doing. Just trying to prepare for Thursday."

Piniella expressed no real worries that a couple of his pitchers got hit hard Sunday. Jason Marquis followed Lilly into the game and gave up 4 hits and 4 runs in two-thirds of an inning. Closer Ryan Demspter pitched the fourth inning and also gave up 4 runs.

Marquis is scheduled to be the Cubs' fourth starter in the division series.

"He hasn't really pitched well here the last two or three times out," Piniella said. "Today? No, I'm not concerned about today."

The Cubs scored a run in the first inning on Alfonso Soriano's 33rd homer of the season and his 12th leadoff homer, extending his club record. He also hit 14 homers in September, breaking the club record he shared for September with Ernie Banks (1957).

The Cubs were up 4-0 by the third before the Reds rallied.

"We got there," Piniella said of the postseason. "We had some bumpy road along the way. But the team has endured. These kids have played hard. They've been through a tough pennant race here for the past 6-7 weeks. I think that'll pay some dividends for us in postseason."

Roster moves: The Cubs informed outfielder Sam Fuld and pitcher Sean Gallagher that they are to report to the Arizona Fall League, meaning they won't be with the Cubs in the playoffs. The team also sent home little-used reliever Carmen Pignatiello.

The Cubs have until 10 a.m. Wednesday to set their final 25-man roster.

"We talked about a preliminary the other day," Lou Piniella said. "We'll probably have a couple (tough) decisions, but we were waiting to see who the first-round opponent would be because I think it would have a little variance on what we would do.

"These decisions here at the end of the year, they're all hard because everybody's contributed here, and everybody's been a part of it," Piniella added. "The reality is you can only use 25 people. A few people that deserve to stay on probably won't be, but there's nothing much we can do."

No Brenly: As of Sunday, TV analyst Bob Brenly said he would not be working the Cubs-Diamondbacks series for TBS. Instead, he will be working the Yankees-Indians series.

Brenly has been the TV analyst for three years with the Cubs. He managed the Diamondbacks to the 2001 world championship.

Although he said he was disappointed, he looked at it philosophically.

"Things could change as the afternoon moves on here, but right now I'm on the Indians-Yankees series and won't get an opportunity to join up with the Cubs until the NLCS, if that works out that way," Brenly said. "It's changed three times already today, so it could change again.

"I'm not disappointed ever to do postseason games. It's always exciting. It doesn't matter who the teams are, but I know the Diamondbacks so well, and I know the Cubs so well. It would have been a lot of fun do that series knowing the history of the two teams as well as I do."

Reds 8, Cubs 4

At the plate: Alfonso Soriano hit his 33rd homer of the season to lead off the game. It was his 12th leadoff homer this year, and he is the first player in major-league history with two seasons of 10 or more. (He hit 13 with the New York Yankees in 2003.) Soriano went 3-for-3 with a double and 3 RBI. Jacque Jones was 2-for-2 with a double.

On the mound: Lefty Ted Lilly tuned up for the playoffs with 2 perfect innings. He struck out one. Only Jason Marquis and Ryan Dempster struggled, as each gave up 4 runs. Kerry Wood gave up a double but struck out three in the fifth inning.

-- Bruce Miles