Theriot Therrible Choice At Thop Of Order

After a six-game hiatus, Ryan Theriot will return to the Cubs' leadoff spot for Saturday's game at Houston.

Marlon Byrd went 2-for-4 with an RBI double as the leadoff hitter Friday, but the continued impotence of Aramis Ramirez (.158 batting average, .263 slugging average) as the team's cleanup hitter motivated Lou Piniella to shift Byrd to the No. 4 spot Saturday.

Kosuke Fukudome failed in his audition as the leadoff hitter in the Cubs' previous five games, going 4-for-17 (.235 BA) with three walks during that span. Fukudome has been benched Saturday in favor of rookie Tyler Colvin (It's about time, Lou!).

Theriot, who went 0-for-4 Friday, is hitting just .189 (17-for-90) in his 22 games as a second baseman. He has not drawn a walk since May 1 (a span of 106 at-bats) and has not had an extra-base hit since May 4 (a span of 97 at-bats). He has just six extra-base hits since Aug. 2, 2009 (a span of 405 at-bats).

Piniella's options are limited with the current makeup of the roster, especially if Ramirez does not return to form.

But I like the idea of the Daily Herald's Bruce Miles. Why not return Alfonso Soriano to the top of the lineup?

Soriano's patience at the plate leaves a lot to be desired, but he can't do any worse than the three Cubs who have occupied the leadoff spot this season, as Miles illustrates with a 2010 stats comparison:

Soriano: .298 batting average/.363 on-base average/.579 slugging average with 17 walks and nine homers.

Theriot: .280/.308/.308 with seven walks.

Fukudome: .285/.383/.483 with 26 walks.

Byrd: .302/.341/.497 with seven walks.

A move to the top of the order would be agreeable to Soriano's ego and would also add the element of instant offense. Of Soriano's 91 home runs as a Cub, 76 have come in the leadoff spot.