Opening Day is only nine days away, but Mark DeRosa still doesn’t know if he will be in the starting lineup.
It all depends on whether general manager Jim Hendry acquires Orioles second baseman Brian Roberts, who has been on the Cubs radar for nearly 3 1/2 months.
“It’s funny for me,” DeRosa said Friday at Hi Corbett Field. “I feel like I’ve done enough … where I shouldn’t be put in this position. Hopefully Jim and [manager Lou Piniella] realize I’m one of the best hitters they have and my bat should be in the lineup.”
Piniella said his biggest concern right now is finding a center fielder who can complement Felix Pie, and that he has heard nothing of any impending moves.
“We are planning to go with what we have,” he said.
That would be good news for DeRosa, who clearly is tired of the rumors. He said he has spoken to Hendry about his status, but that was quite a while back. He said to ask about it again would be akin to “beating a dead horse.”
“If it happens, I’ll deal with it,” he said. “If it doesn’t, I’ll get over it. It’s part of the job, but I’ve done what I was brought in to do, and I can only get better.”
So has he put the Roberts rumor behind him?
“I’ll put it behind me when I see who starts and I’m playing second, or if he’s here and I’m playing somewhere else,” DeRosa said. “I don’t worry about it. I know how good a player he is. I respect what he brings to the table and what he has done.
“At the same time, his arrival means I’m not playing second. So unless there’s another spot on the infield, or another spot in the outfield that’s open that I’m not aware of, it makes for an uncomfortable spring.”
If Roberts does arrive, he will back up Roberts, Kosuke Fukudome in right and Aramis Ramirez at third. DeRosa hasn’t played outfield all spring.
“It’s nothing one day couldn’t cure,” DeRosa said.
Piniella isn’t set on a leadoff man, and even mentioned Fukudome in that role Friday.
That suggests the Cubs still are trying hard to acquire one, with Roberts and Coco Crisp mentioned most.
“I know [Roberts and Crisp are] leadoff hitters, left-handed and speed guys. I don’t bring that to the table.”
But what DeRosa does bring to the table could be exactly what the Cubs need to win the Central Division. How the issue will be resolved is unknown, but either way, DeRosa said he’s confident things will work out in the long run.
“I actually feel great now that I’m back from this heart surgery,” he said referring to the procedure he had done early in spring training. “I feel a lot better than I did last year coming over here [from Texas]. … It’s a lot more relaxing. I’m having fun and not trying to impress people because I think they know what I can do.”
———-
psullivan@tribune.com
