Chicago Cubs slugger Alfonso Soriano shook his head several times when asked if he will be in Tucson today for another minor-league game.
The All-Star believes he is ready to return to the major leagues.
Soriano went 1 for 3 with an infield single, a flyout and a strikeout Tuesday night in a rehab game with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs against the Tucson Sidewinders at TEP.
In his second game since going on the disabled list June 12 for a broken left hand, Soriano batted leadoff and played four innings in left field in a 10-inning, 5-4 loss to Tucson before 1,925 fans. In his first at-bat, he smacked a grounder off left-hander Evan MacLane's glove and beat shortstop Jesus Merchan's throw to first.
"My hand is very good," Soriano said, as he signed a jersey at his locker. "I feel good, so I can't wait to go back to the big leagues and help my team."
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Soriano began his rehab Monday with a 0-for-2 performance as a designated hitter with the Cubs rookie-level team in Peoria.
He could join the Cubs today in Phoenix. Chicago closes a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks tonight at Chase Field.
"I feel very good," he said. "They have the question if they want me to play (today), or they want to give me one more day."
Iowa manager Pat Listach said the Chicago Cubs will decide today where Soriano plays next.
"He got his at-bats. That's the most important thing," Listach said.
Meanwhile, the Sidewinders lost their best hitter Tuesday. The Diamondbacks promoted third baseman Jamie D'Antona. He recorded a pinch-hit single in the seventh in his major-league debut.
To place D'Antona on the 40-man roster, Arizona moved left fielder Eric Byrnes to the 60-day disabled list.
D'Antona, a second-round draft pick in 2003, hit .367 with 126 hits for Tucson, both second in the Pacific Coast League. During a memorable month, he also played in the Futures and Triple-A All-Star games and won the Triple-A home run derby.
"D'Antona did a great job of being consistent and putting up quality at-bats in Triple-A," farm director A.J. Hinch said. "He maintained his approach on the field and waited for an opportunity to open up. He's had a terrific year and deserves his first taste of the big leagues."
Without D'Antona, manager Bill Plummer said his team will likely run more to generate offense.
"We're going to have to fight and scratch," Plummer said. "Our starting pitching is one of our biggest keys."
In another move, Arizona traded ex-Sidewinder Emilio Bonifacio, the fastest player in the organization and heir apparent to second baseman Orlando Hudson, to the Washington Nationals for reliever Jon Rauch.
"I'm sure they'll miss a player like him," Plummer said. "He brought a lot of energy and played hard every day, and he's a great kid."
Inside pitch
● Tucson's Trent Oeltjen tied the game at 4 with a two-run single in the ninth, and Wilkin Castillo hit a one-out single in the 10th to score Josh Whitesell with the winning run.
● Reliever Connor Robertson is expected to join Tucson today after the D-backs optioned him.
Today
• Who: Iowa at Sidewinders
• When: 7 p.m.
• Radio: 1450-AM
