The Cubs keep on shuffling the deck, and there seems to be fewer good cards to play these days.

In Monday's 12-7 loss to the last-place Houston Astros, the Cubs lost left fielder Alfonso Soriano to a left quad injury. They don't know how long he will be out until results of an MRI exam become available Tuesday.

Earlier in the day, they were forced to put infielder-outfielder Jeff Baker on the disabled list because of a lingering left groin strain. They brought up infielder DJ LeMahieu from Class AA Tennessee.

How much playing time LeMahieu actually gets remains to be seen. Some of the Cubs' youngsters have played. Others have not.

But the constant up and down seems to be getting to the club and manager Mike Quade.

"I think the situation with the roster in flux and all the stuff that's gone on here has made it tougher," said Quade, whose team lost two of three games to the Pirates before the Astros came to town.

If there's any solace, it's that the Cubs are getting a good look at their young players from the system.

Infielders Darwin Barney and Starlin Castro are regulars. Center fielder Tony Campana has played a lot lately and added a dose of much-needed speed to what has been a plodding lineup and one that has not hit nearly enough for power.

"I think it's something I can bring to the table that I hope helps us win some games," Campana said. "I hope I can get on base and get myself in scoring position so I can score.

"It's a bunch of young guys I've been able to play with. It shows how good we've been drafting and scouting. We've got a lot of good players in the minor leagues. Just pushing. That's a good thing."

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