Canadian Dempster not worried about weather

Manager Mike Quade's Opening Day lineup has Kosuke Fukudome leading off in right field, Starlin Castro at shortstop, Marlon Byrd in center field, Aramis Ramirez at third, Carlos Pena at first, Geovany Soto catching, Alfonso Soriano in left field and rookie Darwin Barney at second base. Quade expects Barney and Jeff Baker to platoon some depending on the opposing pitcher.

''They had great camps and deserve a chance to play,'' he said.

For Canadian Ryan Dempster, who makes his first Opening Day start, the chilly and possibly damp conditions aren't a concern.

''I can't wait,'' he said. ''Leading up to it is not so much like any other game, but when I go out there, I want to win a ballgame. I had a real good spring — everybody did. We have a real good team.

''Every win matters. The Giants won their division by one game last season [and went on to win the World Series].''

Pitching power

Quade calls pitching the team's strength, from the rotation to the bullpen.

''Pitching is the name of the game, and I think we have good pitching,'' he said.

Having a winning April is the team's first goal, he added.

''Games in April do matter as much as September,'' Quade said. ''You'd like to get off to a good start and build on what I think the strength of this team is — pitching.''

Quade is confident newest addition Matt Garza, who struggled in the spring with a 10.58 ERA, won't struggle in the regular season.

''There's no question Arizona is an adjustment for pitchers,'' Quade said. ''He has too much history of quality stuff. One of the things I like is the coaches said the ball was coming out of his hand well all spring.''

Garza starts Sunday.

A second first

Quade's first season opener will be akin to his first day last August in Washington when he took over after Lou Piniella's surprise retirement.

''I want to get everything done [Thursday], so I can literally enjoy the day,'' Quade said. ''There will be a multitude of emotions. My folks will be here, but, ultimately, I'll be excited to just play. To tee this up for real is as exciting as anything.

''A lot of these guys were responsible for playing well [at the end of] last year and doing things that were responsible for us winning. It wasn't a good year, but it was a good finish. And I look at the additions we made of people whose history says they'll help us.''

Back to the beginning

Kerry Wood hadn't been in the Cubs' clubhouse since 2008 and liked the updates. What didn't change was the same corner locker.

''It was nice walking in here [Thursday] morning,'' he said.

Returning to the cold from Arizona also was normal for Wood, who makes his home in Chicago.

''It hits you in the face when you get off the plane, but that's baseball in April,'' he said.