(Courtesy of The Sports Xchange) Now that Mark Prior's strained shoulder will keep him off the 25-man roster at the beginning of the season, the Cubs are in search of a fifth starter.

The Cubs may try to use second baseman Todd Walker and/or reliever Scott Williamson as trade bait to obtain a starter, but time is running out, and it appears the Cubs may have to go with one of their young players to fill the role.

Prior was supposed to start the second game of the season against Cincinnati on April 5, but left-handed pitcher Glendon Rusch will get the start instead.

For two weeks, the Cubs likely will go with a four-man rotation because they have three days off in that span. But if Prior is not ready (and Kerry Wood and Wade Miller are not expected to be back until May), the Cubs will look at one of four young arms to back Carlos Zambrano, Rusch, Greg Maddux and Jerome Williams.

Left-hander Rich Hill, who is struggling with his control during spring training, is the leading candidate because he has the most major league experience (10 games).

The Cubs are also eyeing right-hander Angel Guzman, who has been beset by injuries the past three seasons but owns a minor league career mark of 27-14 with a 2.61 ERA.

Left-hander Sean Marshall has been impressive in camp (0.00 ERA in 3 1/3 innings) and could get stretched out for starting duty, but he hasn't pitched beyond the Double-A level.

Right-handed Jae Kuk Ryu (0.00 ERA in three innings) would also be considered. He has only one appearance beyond the Double-A level in his minor league career.

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NOTES, QUOTES

--RHP Carlos Zambrano is back in camp and will pitch in a Cactus League game on Sunday. Zambrano, who had been pitching for Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic, will be the team's Opening Day pitcher on April 3 against Cincinnati, and the Cubs are glad they can now monitor his program building up to that game.

--1B Derrek Lee is back in camp after the United States was eliminated in the World Baseball Classic. Lee suffered a minor shoulder injury in a March 12 game against Japan, and the Cubs can now treat and monitor it for the rest of spring training.

--C Michael Barrett is back in camp after the United States was eliminated in the World Baseball Classic. Barrett and Henry Blanco (who played with Venezuela) both will be able to play a full two weeks of Cactus League games and get used to some of the newer pitchers on the staff -- especially LHP Scott Eyre and RHP Bobby Howry.

--RF Jacque Jones was hitting .421 through 13 exhibitions games, and that could bode well for the team if he keeps it up to open the season. The Cubs are hoping Jones can return to his 2003 form when he hit .304 with Minnesota. He hit .254 in 2004 and .249 in 2005. He likely will open the season batting fifth in the order behind Derrek Lee and Aramis Ramirez.

--RHP Scott Williamson, who has a 3.60 ERA and a save in five Cactus League appearances, continues to pitch well in the spring, and it will be interesting to see if some of the other teams who showed interest in him will intensify their efforts to try to pick him up -- especially if they want to part with a starting pitcher. The Cubs are interested in keeping Williamson, but with RHP Bobby Howry and LHP Scott Eyre on board, there is an abundance of setup men in camp.

BY THE NUMBERS: 1 -- Day the Cubs were in first place in 2005. It came after they beat Arizona 16-6 on Opening Day, April 4.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "It's true when they say time flies. You always hear the older coaches and the older players coming in and telling you to cherish the time you have now because it flies, and they were right. They were right." -- Veteran pitcher Greg Maddux, who turns 40 in April.

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