Washington was Bradley's manager last season in Texas and said Friday the outfielder should make a significant contribution to the Cubs.

"He's a winner, and he wants to play," Washington said. "He's hard on himself more than anything. A lot of people misconstrued him going off as being selfish or whatever. Milton is a perfectionist, and there's no perfection in the game of baseball, but that's the way he is. That's how he gets his edge.

"Most of the time when he does things, he's not trying to show anybody up. He does it because he's mad at himself because he expects more out of himself. The attitude he brings rubs off on his teammates. It affects the whole lineup."

That attitude is one thing the Cubs were looking for when they signed Bradley to a three-year, $30 million contract in January. It's not something that can easily be defined.

However, the Cubs would like to see him in the lineup. On Thursday, Bradley made his Cubs debut but was lifted for a pinch-runner after drawing a walk in his first at-bat because of tightness in his left quad.

On Friday, Cubs manager Lou Piniella said Bradley showed up feeling ill with flu-like symptoms and was sent home. His leg also was still sore. He's doubtful for this weekend.

"One thing we do have is time on our side," Piniella said. "He worked exceedingly hard and never had any problems, and here he experiences some discomfort prior to our first game. We've got 37 more games, so there's no hurry for anything."

Bradley delivered for Washington and the Rangers, batting .321 with 22 homers and 77 RBIs and led the American League in on-base percentage. He did all that despite playing only six Spring Training games. The Rangers were careful with Bradley to keep him in the lineup.

"We certainly took care of him," Washington said of last spring. "We wanted him ready for the season. He got all the work he needed as far as swinging the bat and tracking and technical stuff.

"Milton is a good hitter," Washington said of the switch-hitter, who has a career .280 average. "He has a better eye than anybody I've seen in the game. If he's arguing with an umpire, you go look at the video and [Bradley] is usually right."

Bradley has played in the National League as recently as 2007 with the San Diego Padres. The only downside to switching from the American League to the National League now is that he won't be able to take advantage of the designated hitter spot.

"You've got to take care of Milton," Washington said. "He plays so hard. Being over here in the American League, we were able to take care of him in the DH spot. Lou is going to have to do a good job of monitoring his play and give him time off."

Washington hasn't talked to Piniella about Bradley, 30, but has had several conversations with Cubs hitting coach Gerald Perry. Bradley and Perry were together in Oakland, and have been reunited again in Chicago.

"He and Gerald, they butt heads a lot but they're good friends," Washington said. "Gerald knows him very well, and he has a lot of respect for Gerald. If anyone can get him to do what he has to do, it'll be Gerald Perry.

"And [Bradley] has got respect from his teammates. Nobody realizes how much respect he got from his teammates. His teammates will do a good job of getting him on the field, too. That's what happened over here. It was his teammates more than me."

Cubs outfielder Alfonso Soriano said Bradley has been joking around the clubhouse with his teammates and doing his part to fit in.

"He's a good teammate -- he's a great teammate," Washington said. "Everybody in Texas loved him. When he got out of line, his teammates were able to put him back in line. Milton is not dumb. He knows when he does wrong. If you correct Milton when he does wrong, he's a very humble person. If you correct Milton and he's not wrong, watch out."