"The comparisons between Cubs rookie Andrew Cashner and then ex-Cub Kerry Wood were obvious last year.

Both pitchers hail from Texas, were first-round draft picks by the Cubs, and burst into the majors with triple-digit fastballs and a ton of hype.

"I've been compared to him a lot," Cashner said. "It's pretty special to me because of the pitcher that he is. Hopefully I live up to his expectations."

Before Cashner grew his hair out over the winter, he even resembled a younger version of Wood, standing 6-foot-6 with closely cropped blonde hair. Wood was oblivious to the facial resemblance, though he has heard the comparisons as well.

"He's definitely a kid from Texas though, you can tell that," he said.

But Wood hopes the comparisons end there.

He doesn't want Cashner to suffer the same fate he did coming up, when Wood constantly was compared to fellow Texas power pitchers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens.

"He's going to be Cashner," Wood said. "And he's going to be fine."

Both pitchers made their Cactus League debuts Monday against the Brewers. Cashner, battling for a rotation spot, pitched two innings of relief, allowing two runs.

Last year was a wild ride for the former first-round draft pick, who started out with a bang after being called up from Double-A Tennessee, struggled for a stretch, then finished strong with a 1.40 earned-run average over his last 18 appearances."