And given payroll flexibility, the top speed/leadoff free agent expected to be on the market should be in the cross hairs of both Chicago teams.

''I would think that we'll probably try to add more speed, but we'll see,'' Piniella said Sunday when asked whether Kosuke Fukudome was in his 2010 plans for the leadoff spot. ''That's just conjecture, nothing more, nothing less.''

Piniella didn't name any specific free-agent targets, but the Cubs had Figgins penciled into their fantasy lineup even as they pursued Baltimore Orioles leadoff hitter Brian Roberts before last season.

''There's no sense talking about next year yet,'' Piniella said. ''We have 28 games to go. But speed is something -- we're last in Baseball in stolen bases. That tells you a little something.

''We'll probably address that. But it's conjecture. We haven't really discussed it.''

If the Cubs are unable to address the top of the order with a top-flight offseason acquisition, then Fukudome could be the leadoff man going into next season, Piniella said.

''It's a possibility,'' he said. ''He certainly would be a candidate.''

Fukudome, who got the day off Sunday, has been the Cubs' top producer in that spot this season.

After reaching base twice and scoring once Saturday, he was hitting .303 with a .417 on-base percentage in 27 games batting first.

''We've used him in a few different positions,'' Piniella said a few days ago. ''But it seems to me he's better suited for the 1 and 2 holes than anything else. We've had to use him in different places out of necessity.''

Fukudome has been Piniella's primary leadoff hitter since he shifted Alfonso Soriano out of the top spot in July.

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