Extra bases
• The Cubs will play a six-inning intrasquad game at new Cubs Park on Wednesday, starting at 2 p.m. CT. Kyle Hendricks and Eric Jokisch are scheduled to start. The game is a tune-up for Thursday's Cactus League opener, when the Cubs play host to the D-backs.
One of the players eager for a game is third baseman Mike Olt, who batted .201 last season in the Minor Leagues, first with the Rangers and then the Cubs. So far, Olt, who struggled with vision problems, has passed all the tests in batting practice.
"Everyone's going to be a little rusty, but I feel I'm at a different stage than I was last year, heading into the first scrimmage," Olt said. "I'm just excited to get back in the box and have that competitive edge. Even with live [batting practice], you don't have the competitive edge that you would in a game."
Other pitchers scheduled to throw on Wednesday include Arodys Vizcaino, Neil Ramirez, Tsuyoshi Wada, Brian Schlitter, Chang-Yong Lim, Marcus Hatley and Armando Rivero.
"It's going to be good for me and for the staff to see the guys put themselves out there between the lines with a little more competitive aspect of the game," Cubs manager Rick Renteria said. "They'll be able to see where they're at as far as timing, and pitchers will see where they're at with the hitters and game-type situations, which is what we're building up to do. It'll be good to see them out there playing."
• Kyuji Fujikawa threw 20-25 pitches in a bullpen session on Monday, his first time off a mound since undergoing Tommy John surgery on his right elbow last June.
"It went very well," Renteria said of the pitcher's session. "He gave me a thumbs-up."
• The new rule adopted Monday by Major League Baseball in regard to plays at the plate will affect baserunners, not just catchers. The Cubs will work on sliding drills on Wednesday.
"We all understand the biggest key is to eliminate the possibility of a baserunner actually going after the catcher who's not covering the plate, and eliminate injuries that come from that," Renteria said.
• Hall of Fame pitcher Fergie Jenkins addressed the players in the big league camp as well as the 50-plus taking part in the Minor League mini-camp on Tuesday. Jenkins noted that when he was with the Cubs, they had 40 players sharing one field in Spring Training. Now, the Cubs have six fields, a half field and the stadium at the new facility.
• Single-game tickets for the 2014 Cubs season go on sale March 7 at 10 a.m. CT on cubs.com. Fans who use Mastercard can take advantage of a pre-sale on March 4 at 10 a.m. CT, and will get a 15 percent premium. Fans using other forms of payment on that date may purchase tickets at a 20 percent premium.
In celebration of Wrigley Field's 100th anniversary, the Cubs have introduced a section of MasterCard Century Seats with tickets priced at $19.14 before tax for every game of the season. This 350-seat section is located in the upper-deck box level in left field. Tickets must be purchased with a MasterCard and are available at www.cubs.com/CenturySeats.
On April 23, the Cubs will host the D-backs a century after the Chicago Federals opened then-Weeghman Park against the Kansas City Packers. Both teams will wear commemorative uniforms, and the first 30,000 fans receive a replica 1914 Chi-Feds jersey.