(Courtesy of The Sports Xchange) Right-hander Mark Prior will be shut down until at least next weekend due to a strain in his right shoulder.

The Cubs were hoping Prior would pitch this week in a Cactus League game in order to get ready for an April 5 matchup against Cincinnati, but now he is certain to open the season on the disabled list for the third year in a row.

The Cubs say the strain is not serious, and MRIs have shown no surgery is necessary. But he will take it easy this week, and doctors will consult with him over the weekend to determine the next plan of action.

Prior's arm troubles were the subject of Internet and broadcast speculation since the early portion of spring training, but Prior insists he had no arm problems until he felt soreness after a throwing session March 12 and pain during a March 14 session.

"I've been feeling great from the day I showed up to spring training," Prior said. "I can't say that enough. I'm aware of what's out there. I have never physically sat down and talked to anybody to incite the gossip that 'he and the Cubs have been covering up the bum shoulder for weeks.'"

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NOTES, QUOTES

 --RHP Carlos Zambrano made his first Cactus League appearance since returning from the World Baseball Classic and gave up two runs and struck out seven in five innings. Zambrano is scheduled to be the team's Opening Day pitcher against Cincinnati on April 3.

--LHP Glendon Rusch, who was named to take RHP Mark Prior's spot for an April 5 start against Cincinnati in the second game of the season, suffered a bruised right shin after it was hit by a comebacker on Saturday against the White Sox. Rusch could miss a Cactus League start this week, but he is confident the injury is not serious.

--RHP Greg Maddux, who is slated to start the Cubs' home opener against St. Louis on April 7, is progressing well in Cactus League play after an outing Friday in which he needed just 52 pitches to allow one run on five hits in four innings against San Francisco.

--RHP Roberto Novoa's chances of making the parent squad appear to be slim after he missed close to two weeks with pneumonia. It's unknown when Novoa will be able to return to the mound, and with a well-stocked bullpen in spring training, the numbers are not in his favor. He likely will open the season with Triple-A Iowa.

--LHP Sean Marshall could emerge as a dark horse in the race for the fifth staring spot in the wake of Mark Prior's shoulder injury. The 23-year-old, who never has pitched above the Double-A level, was stretched out to three innings in a simulated game last week and will make a Cactus League start Tuesday.

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