According to a report on Cubs.com, Lou Piniella and Jim Hendry announced the first round of cuts on Friday morning. The Cubs reduced their roster by sending Esmailin Caridad, Jose Ceda, Geoff Jones, Tyler Colvin, Andres Torres, Bobby Scales, Welington Castillo and Josh Donaldson to minor league camp. They also optioned Billy Petrick to Triple-A Iowa. The Cubs Spring Training roster now stands at 50 with more cuts expected next week. Also, according to a report from the Chicago Sun-Times, Alfonso Soriano could return to the lineup by Saturday. If Mark DeRosa is able to return by mid next week as expected, Lou Piniella might be able to play his first game of the spring with his projected regular season lineup before too long.