The veteran outfielder passed his physical, and was officially added to the Cubs on Wednesday. He could be in the lineup as early as Thursday for the series finale against his former team, the San Diego Padres.

Edmonds, who hit .178 in 26 games, was available after being released by the Padres last Friday. He cleared waivers on Wednesday, and the Cubs optioned outfielder Felix Pie to Triple-A Iowa to make room.

"We'll put him out there to play and see what happens," Cubs manager Lou Piniella said.

"Sooner or later, we were going to add a left-hand hitter," Cubs general manager Jim Hendry said after Wednesday's game. "We have the opportunity to add a guy who has been a quality player for a long time and certainly done his share of damage in this ballpark, and we'll give him a chance to get back in a groove."

Hendry said he feels it's a low risk to sign Edmonds, who turns 38 on June 27..

"We're not losing players at all," Hendry said. "We're not losing a great deal of money to take a chance, so for us, it makes perfect sense to give it a shot.

"We don't see the negatives," Hendry said. "Jimmy's been told he's going to have to earn his time. It's not like he's going into an automatic platoon system forever. He has to play well. He knows that. I think Jimmy Edmonds has always performed well when he's on contending clubs."

Edmonds was slowed this spring because of a severe calf injury, which could explain the left-handed-hitting outfielder's slow start, Piniella said.

"He's got experience," Piniella said. "He's played in big situations. I think here at Wrigley Field with the crowd and so forth, and the fact that this club can win, I think those are all positives for bringing a veteran player."

Edmonds has a career .286 batting average, and could be slipped into the Cubs' lineup to break up the right-handed hitters, which would allow Piniella to bump Kosuke Fukudome up to No. 2. Asked where he'll hit, Piniella, weary of lineup questions, smiled.

"He's going to hit ninth," Piniella said. "I'm going to move the pitcher to eighth, and hit Edmonds ninth."

That's not likely to happen. Wherever Edmonds hits, the Cubs were eager to have him in the mix.

"Most people feel he still has something left in the tank," Hendry said. "He's going to be a motivated player. We're not going to ask him to go out every single day. The people we had watching him in normal coverage -- we weren't scouting him -- felt he was going to get better right before he was sent out. We'll see."

Ken Kravec and Paul Weaver, two of the Cubs' top scouts, had seen Edmonds during a series against Atlanta and felt the center fielder was making progress from the spring injury. He arrives at minimal cost to the Cubs. Edmonds is owed $8 million this year, and $2 million of that is being paid by the St. Louis Cardinals, who dealt him to the Padres last December. The Cubs will only have to pay a prorated Major League minimum.

"There's no negatives in it," Hendry said. "You're not giving up players, you're not spending a lot of dollars. Hopefully, he can give us a great portion of the Jim Edmonds we all knew and used to fear in a lot of ways."

What does Edmonds bring?

"Another veteran presence in our clubhouse, a left-handed bat with power," Chicago's Mark DeRosa said. "He's a guy who has done it for a long time on a great ballclub and won a world championship. That's something not a lot of guys in this clubhouse can say. He's a guy I've always admired from afar the way he plays the game, and the talent he brings, and the ability to drive the ball to left field like a right-handed hitter."

Jason Marquis played with Edmonds in St. Louis, and saw him make several daredevil catches in center field.

"Jimmy's a gamer," Marquis said. "Everybody knows about his talent. Any time you can insert that guy on your team, you make your team better. I know he'll give 100 percent and add a lot of dimension to this team. It adds a lot of flexibility to the lineup, and puts a big presence in that lineup."

Marquis and Edmonds talked about the Cubs situation before the outfielder committed to the team.

"It's a good fit, right timing," Marquis said. "He's an awesome guy. I've enjoyed his company for three years. I'm glad we were able to get it done and get him over here."

The odd man out is Reed Johnson, who has become the regular center fielder while Pie struggles at the plate. It's nothing new, Johnson said.

"This isn't about any one individual," Johnson said. "Every single guy in the clubhouse wants one thing and that's to go to the playoffs and a World Series. When you have everybody on the same page like that, I'm all for it. I want to get a ring, whatever it takes."