PHOENIX -- Cubs manager Lou Piniella would like to get leadoff man Alfonso Soriano back in the lineup, and it could be as early as Wednesday.

Soriano made his second rehab start Tuesday night for Triple-A Iowa in Tucson and was 1-for-3, with a single in the first. He flied out to center in the third and struck out in the fifth after a seven-pitch at-bat. Soriano was lifted after five innings.

In the Cubs' five games since the All-Star break, they've scored four runs in their four losses, and nine runs in the lone win Sunday in Houston. The team is batting .251 this month, and the road average is just as bad at .254.

"We're struggling," Piniella said. "We've been struggling for a longer period than what you think. We've been able to win baseball games, but we haven't been scoring runs with the proficiency that we were much earlier in the season."

A lot of that has to do with the loss of Soriano, who was hit by a pitch June 11. The team is 16-18 without him.

"Look, you lose a bat like that and it's going to hurt you, especially for six weeks," Piniella said. "We've played four months of baseball, 16 weeks, and Soriano has been out for eight of them, and basically he's our biggest home run bat, so yeah, it's going to hurt."

Give the Cubs credit. They've held on to first place in the National League Central and boasted the best record in the National League without Soriano.

"Getting Soriano back in the lineup will do a lot of things for us," Piniella said. "It'll get me one deeper in the bench. I can't remember the last time we double-switched. It'll get us a little deeper on the bench, and at the same time, you come to the ballpark, and there's your leadoff hitter and you build your lineup from there. Whoever is hitting best in the two-hole will hit second, and you go."

The Cubs are fortunate to still be in the position they're in despite losing Soriano, Carlos Zambrano, Reed Johnson and Kerry Wood to injuries.

"Now we have to pick it up," Piniella said. "We get this guy back tomorrow, and it might take him a few games, but we have to start hitting and scoring some runs, and we have to play the teams we have to beat."

After Wednesday's game in Arizona, the Cubs' last game against an NL West opponent, they'll square off against the Florida Marlins at Wrigley Field, then go to Milwaukee to face the charging Brewers.

"We've got time to right this thing," Piniella said, "but we have to start hitting the ball."

Can Soriano pick up where he left off? He was batting .283 when he was hit by a pitch, suffering a broken bone in his left hand. The team medical staff may decide he needs more time.

"He probably needs more at-bats than we're giving him," Piniella said. "What do we do -- leave him here? I don't know."

Pitching matchup
CHC: LHP Ted Lilly (9-6, 4.49 ERA)
Lilly bounced back from his shortest outing of the season in his last start before the All-Star break with one of his best starts of the season Friday night at Houston. Though he wasn't involved in the decision, Lilly went seven innings, allowing just one run on a Carlos Lee homer and just six hits total. He is 1-2 with a 2.73 ERA in five career appearances against the D-backs, including 0-1 with a 3.00 ERA in one start at Chase Field. He beat Arizona at Wrigley Field on May 9, allowing one earned run on three hits over seven innings in a 3-1 Cubs victory.

ARI: LHP Doug Davis (3-4, 4.14 ERA)
Davis had his shortest outing of the year the last time out, but was given a great deal of run support against the Dodgers. Pitching on a full week's rest, he lasted just three innings, giving up five runs (four earned) on five hits and three walks. He didn't factor into the decision. Against the Cubs, Davis is 7-5 with a 3.39 ERA in his career in 13 starts.

Tidbits
The Cubs' Aug. 4 game vs. Houston will start at 6:08 p.m. CT to accommodate ESPN. Also, the Cubs' Aug. 10 game against St. Louis will begin at 7:09 p.m. CT to accommodate ESPN. ... Billy Muldowney gave up four runs on five hits over five innings in Class A Daytona's 4-3 loss to Sarasota on Monday. Jeremy Papelbon threw one scoreless inning in relief. He has not given up a run in his last nine appearances, a total of 17 1/3 innings. ... Class A Peoria won its fourth straight game with a 7-1 win over the Loons. Brandon Guyer and Luis Bautista each homered for the Chiefs. ... Ryan Keedy had three hits and two RBIs in Class A Boise's 9-5 win over the AquaSox. ... Randy Johnson may be 13-0 against the Cubs, but he has a ways to go to set the record for most consecutive victories. Former Cub Russ Meyer beat his former team 17 consecutive times from June 14, 1951, to April 30, 1955. All-time, Meyer was 24-3 against the Cubs.

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Up next
• Thursday: Cubs (Carlos Zambrano, 10-4, 2.98) vs. Marlins (Scott Olsen, 6-4, 3.84), 7:05 p.m. CT
• Friday: Cubs (Ryan Dempster, 11-4, 3.05) vs. Marlins (Josh Johnson, 0-0, 3.86), 1:20 p.m. CT
• Saturday: Cubs (Rich Harden, 5-2, 2.12) vs. Marlins (Chris Volstad, 2-1, 2.16), 12:05 p.m. CT