"Fukudome is playing so well in right field that I'm thinking let's just not even mess with that unless you have to," Piniella said Thursday. "He's the best defensive right fielder in this league."

Fukudome has a knack for limiting potential extra-base hits to singles, a rocket right arm and a comfort level manning right at Wrigley Field uncommon for a rookie. Then again, Fukudome isn't like other rookies.

"He charges the ball well," Piniella said. "Right field is a tough field to play here. It's not a picnic here. He goes to the line well. He gets a good jump on the ball. I've been of the thought that the less you disturb that, the better."

Disturbing Fukudome could mean moving him to another outfield position. Center field has been a merry-go-round so far. Felix Pie packed for Triple-A Iowa after a slow start, and Jim Edmonds arrived to platoon with Reed Johnson two weeks ago. Edmonds is hitting .125 (3-for-24) since being picked up, lower than his average with the Padres before they waived him. Fukudome has started one game in center. He'll stay in right.

Piniella has said he wants to get Micah Hoffpauir in the lineup, but he can only play first or a corner outfield. For a minute, Piniella thought out loud about his options with the Japanese outfielder.

"We've been considering, we've been talking, we've been thinking," Piniella said. "But nothing's been definite. In this business, you better have Plan A and Plan B. If not, you can get caught with your pants down real quick. So you've got to think ahead a little bit, that's all. The more I look at it, and the more I revisit it, the more I like that young man in right field. I'm not saying that we won't do it occasionally or whatever. But he plays right field so well that you would hate to disturb that. We'll leave it at that."

Fukudome ranks second among National League outfielders in the early All-Star voting to teammate Alfonso Soriano, who delivered a walk-off RBI single on Wednesday in the Cubs' 2-1, 10-inning win over Los Angeles.

"Thank God, he doesn't read English very well," Piniella said of the criticism leveled at Soriano this week after he dropped a ball in Pittsburgh on Sunday which led to a Cubs loss. "He doesn't let it bother him, that's what I'm saying.

"He comes to the ballpark every day, and his demeanor and his disposition doesn't change," Piniella said of Soriano. "He's in his routine, he works hard before every game, he takes his batting practice, he gets his stretching in, he gets his running, and then he does a few dances and he's ready to play."