"Kosuke Fukudome hasn't turned into a pumpkin yet, but according to North Side urban legend, he should be getting a little orange around the gills any minute now, with three days already passed since April.

Not that new Cubs manager Mike Quade is buying it this time around.

''I'm expecting him to stay hot for six months,'' Quade said.

That's a long shot if history means anything, considering the Cubs' hottest April hitter for the last four seasons has also been one of its most inconsistent hitters over the five months that have followed each of the last three.

Fukudome went 0-for-3 on Tuesday night in the Cubs' 4-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers, dropping his batting average to .358.

But if Quade's right, it might go a long way toward the Cubs having any chance of getting out of the quicksand their season seems to have slipped into. Because if Fukudome can't be counted on as a platoon leadoff man, the options fall off dramatically after that.

And the top two spots in the batting order have been two of the few highlights of the first four weeks of the season.

But Fukudome's struggles after April have been so pronounced, and so reliable, that as he stepped to the plate on the final day of the month Saturday with the Cubs looking for a go-ahead hit in the ninth, one press box wag asked out loud, ''Wonder if he's got one more left in him this month?''

To which another responded, ''It's already May in Japan.''

Fukudome then bounced into a fielder's choice to the pitcher. "