All hands on deck for banged-up Cubs

CHICAGO -- Kris Bryant quipped earlier this week that he no longer knows what position he plays. Every day, he heads into the Cubs' clubhouse and checks the lineup sheet to see his daily assignment.

"But I'm most comfortable right there," Bryant said. "It kind of reminds me of club ball growing up. I was playing all over the field and I never knew exactly where I was going to be. But I knew I was playing. And that was a good feeling."

It was the same on Wednesday night, when Bryant began the Cubs' 4-3 loss to the Nationals at Wrigley Field as the first baseman in place of Anthony Rizzo. Then in the fifth inning, Bryant grabbed a different glove and jogged out to right field, filling in for Jason Heyward.

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This was an all-hands-on-deck kind of evening for the Cubs, who had Rizzo resting a back issue, Heyward exiting early with left hamstring tightness and Javier Báez initially out of the lineup for a scheduled day off. The shortstop has also battled some minor injury bugs.

Really, this has been the story of the past month for the Cubs, who hardly seem to have a bench these days with how often guys are moving in and out of the lineup or switching positions. Manager David Ross has been trying to assemble a puzzle with pieces routinely missing.

Ross has also tried to keep in mind that this is a journey of 162 games -- not a 60-game sprint like last season.

"I really want to keep the group as a whole as healthy as possible," Ross said. "It's hard not to write certain guys' names in the lineup, but the more I realize, it just takes everybody."

Prior to Wednesday's game, the Cubs summoned catcher P.J. Higgins from Triple-A Iowa in part because he also brings versatility to the table. So, while he is now Willson Contreras' backup behind the plate, Higgins made his MLB debut as a first baseman after Heyward left in the fifth.

Besides Bryant, Nico Hoerner (second base and then center field) and Eric Sogard (shortstop and then second) also manned multiple positions against Washington. Pitcher Adbert Alzolay came off the bench and pinch-ran for starter Jake Arrieta in the fifth, coming around to score his first run in the Majors.

Báez came off the bench as a pinch-hitter in the seventh and then played the remainder of the game. He teamed with Contreras for a key caught-stealing of Juan Soto in the top of the ninth, and then belted a solo homer off closer Brad Hand in the home half.

That is where the late comeback bid came to a close.

"We've had guys banged up," said Arrieta, who allowed four runs in five innings opposite Nationals ace Max Scherzer. "But the guys that have filled in have done a nice job. With some of our big guys going down, we're going to need certain guys to step up.

"It seems like every time something happens, we have guys that can fill in and be placeholders, or play for an extended period of time and give us what we need while our guys get healthy."

Setbacks within the bullpen have helped open the door for rookie arms like Tommy Nance, Justin Steele and Keegan Thompson to break into the big leagues with impressive showings. Issues on the position-player front in April triggered Matt Duffy's rise from role player to lineup regular.

Going back to late April, the Cubs have had Joc Pederson, Ian Happ, Jake Marisnick and Hoerner spend time on the injured list, among others. Rizzo, Báez, Bryant and Heyward have missed bursts of games either due to nagging issues or bouts with illness.

"Our bench has been contributing for well over a month now," Ross said. "I'm comfortable with those guys. There's nothing they have to prove to me."

Bryant has nothing to prove, either. He knows that Ross will be writing his name into the Cubs' lineup, even if the specific position changes on a nightly basis.

Bryant has not played third base since April 20. He has played multiple positions in a game seven times going back to that point. On the year, Bryant has started 23 games in the outfield (11 in left, seven in right and five in center), 14 at third and two at first. He has done this all while hitting at an MVP-caliber level.

When it is all hands on deck, and with the Cubs trying to climb up the National League Central standings, Bryant does not mind his multifaceted role.

"I don't know where I play anymore," he said with a smirk. "But, I play out there and give it all I got. Hopefully I'm not too rusty at any of the positions.

"I've always taken pride in being able to fill in a hole when the team needs it. It's been really fun for me this year doing that."