Extra bases

• Cubs second baseman Darwin Barney will get the stitches out of his left knee on Friday and begin a rehab assignment on Saturday with Triple-A Iowa.

Barney suffered a knee laceration on March 30 in the last spring game when he slid into the right field wall at Minute Maid Park in Houston. Barney has been able to take batting practice and grounders.

The Iowa Cubs play their first home game Friday against Albuquerque, and Barney is expected to play Saturday through Monday and rejoin the Cubs on Tuesday.

• Cubs' right-fielder Nate Schierholtz came up through the Giants system, and was part of the 2010 World Series championship team. But last July, he was dealt to the Phillies while the Giants went on to win another championship. Schierholtz will get a ring from 2012 but most likely not until the Cubs travel to San Francisco in July. A Giants official said there were no plans to do anything during the four-game series, which began Thursday.

One thing Schierholtz did learn with the Giants was what it takes to win.

"I think it all starts in the locker room -- team chemistry -- as well as playing the game the right way, playing solid defense behind your pitching, and playing the game the right way from hitting to pitching to defense," Schierholtz said. "Small ball is obviously important, and I think it'll be important this series because of the weather."

Does he see that with the Cubs?

"I felt that right away here," he said. "We've got a great group of guys, and they want to win as much as we ever did there."

• Police are investigating who dropped off a goat head at Wrigley Field on Wednesday. The package was addressed to Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts but intercepted before he got it.

"It's just obviously an unfortunate fan doing something pretty stupid," Sveum said.

Said Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo: "That's probably just an upset fan or a fan of another team. My opinion is it's just dumb, but it is what it is. It's kind of funny."

A curse was supposedly placed on the Cubs in 1945 when the team would not allow Billy Sianis to bring his goat to a game at Wrigley Field. The Cubs have not won a National League pennant or gotten to the World Series since.