e as the Flames cruised to a 5-2 win over the Washington Capitals on Saturda

CHICAGO -- This is the genius of Joe Maddon:Next week, all four of his infielders will start for the National League at the All-Star Game, a trick no team has turned since the 1963 St. Louis Cardinals. Yet when those Cubs return to Wrigley Field next Friday to face the Pirates, two of them -- Kris Bryant and Ben Zobrist -- could wind up starting in the outfield. They might not be the only ones playing a different position.If you want to know what separates Chicago from the handful of other title contenders at midseason, versatility is a good place to start. And that starts with Maddon.Ive always been about that, he said recently.Maddon has never been shy about testing his players skill sets, either, because hes always challenging himself. He could write a book about turning the tables on decades of received baseball wisdom and whats hes learned along the way. But on this day he limits himself to a list of benefits a manager gets having guys who can play multiple positions: reacting to in-game changes is easier; you can carry an extra pitcher if you need to; more flexibility in scheduling rest days; and it keeps everyone on their toes.But he saves the best argument for the end of his pitch. Its the same one Maddon employs to stick a toe outside his own comfort zone, and how hes talked a few dozen grown men into donning pajamas for charter flights home from West Coast road trips.And the last point, he summed up, is they love it.Most of the time, anyway.A week earlier, in a 15-inning marathon at Cincinnati, Maddon used three pitchers in the field in the same game for the first time in a century or more. Reliever Pedro Strop, the third pitcher to enter, was in the Cubs bullpen that inning when the phone rang, but he knew better than to assume anything.You never know with Joe, he said. The guys not afraid do anything. ... So I was almost kind of ready for that, because I was the only extra player we got.But the other one? Man, he continued. I was like, `Whoa.That was a year ago, just ahead of the midsummer break with the Dodgers in town. The Cubs were already struggling with a manpower shortage in that same infield.Bryant, the third baseman, was wilting in the heat of his first big-league season and Maddon was trying to give him a day off. That plan fell through when shortstop Starlin Castro -- since traded to the Yankees -- headed off to the hospital for the birth of his second baby. It also forced Maddon to move Addison Russell from second to short and pencil in his only other healthy infielder, reserve Johnny Herrera, at second.Thats when Strop noticed the manager eyeing him.Joe comes over and says to me, `So, what position can you play better? he recalled.Strop has been a pitcher since he broke into the majors in 2009, but hed played more than 200 games at shortstop in the Rockies minor league system before a weak bat convinced him to try throwing off a mound. The prospect of a cameo back at shortstop both tantalized and terrified him -- exactly the response Maddon was looking for.But then Starlin drove back from the hospital, Strop recalled, chuckling at the memory.No matter. Point made.Maddon came by the philosophy while working on his managerial chops as an assistant in the Angels organization and then as the boss in Tampa Bay. In both organizations, he saw talented ballplayers capable of contributing stuck in place because the guy in front of them had the position locked down. Maddons first convert to make a splash was Zobrist in Tampa Bay, who eventually mastered four positions, joined him in Chicago this season and will play second base in the All-Star Game.Bryant, who will start at third, has played three different positions in the same regular-season game. Russell, who didnt become a full-time shortstop until after the midseason break in 2015, will start there in the All-Star Game. And Maddon has already convinced rookie Willson Contreras, who was drafted as a catcher, to try left field and first base during his first month in the majors.A few lockers down, Albert Almora Jr., another highly touted rookie, wondered whether hed get the talk. Hes played center field since being called up June 7 from the Triple-A Iowa club, and hasnt received any further instructions from Maddon.I watch him when Im not playing and it seems like hes three, four moves ahead of the game, Almora said. So hes not afraid to try things, even with the rookies. Just about the first thing he said is he doesnt care if you mess up. ...Like if youre in a situation where you think you should bunt, and he says hit and it doesnt work out, hell come up to you right away and say, `Thats on me, he added. He doesnt just say have fun, he shows you how. That means a lot to a young player.Another few lockers over, 39-year-old David Ross, a backup catcher playing his final season, offers the last word on his smooth-talking, sometimes-zany manager.Too many guys want to equate smarts with being uptight, Ross said. Joe doesnt. He just says, `Do simple better.---This story has been corrected to show the 1963 St. Louis Cardinals had four starting infielders at All-Star Game. Ryan Fitzpatrick Jersey . Brad Jacobs and his Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., team took control of the game early. Mike Alstott Jersey . PAUL, Minn. http://www.authenticfootballshopbuccaneers.com/davonte-lambert-jersey/ . But when it comes to determining if Raymond will find a place on the Leafs roster when training camp concludes in a week, well, that decision will ultimately fall to the head coach. Kwon Alexander Jersey . Calgary scored on the first shift, and Michael Cammalleri scored twice as the Flames cruised to a 5-2 win over the Washington Capitals on Saturday. Ryan Smith Jersey . "Four now," Carl Gunnarsson told the Leaf Report proudly following a 5-2 victory over New York on Tuesday night, the clubs fifth straight at home. For BST, add 5 hours. For India, add 9.5 hours. For Australia, add 15 hours. For New Zealand, add 17 hours.Round 4 (all times ET)2:40 a.m.: Colin Montgomerie 2:50 a.m.: Kodai Ichihara, Kevin Kisner 3 a.m.: Charley Hoffman, Marco Dawson 3:10 a.m.: Mark OMeara, Daniel Summerhays 3:20 a.m.: Scott Hend, Patton Kizzire 3:30 a.m.: Yuta Ikeda, Greg Chalmers 3:40 a.m.: Branden Grace, Soomin Lee 3:50 a.m.: James Hahn, Ryan Evans 4 a.m.: Paul Lawrie, Danny Willett 4:10 a.m.: Zander Lombard, Harris English 4:25 a.m.: Kevin Chappell, K.T. Kim 4:35 a.m.: Adam Scott, Jamie Donaldson 4:45 a.m.: Richard Sterne, Harold Varner III 4:55 a.m.: Marc Leishman, Justin Thomas 5:05 a.m.: Jon Rahm, Graeme McDowell 5:15 a.m.: Jim Furyk, Jordan Spieth 5:25 a.m.: Bubba Watson, Anirban Lahiri 5:35 a.m.: Rickie Fowler, Russell Knox 5:45 a.m.: Matt Jones, Ryan Moore 5:55 a.m.: Lee Westwood, Luke Donald 6:10 a.m.: Byeong Hun An, Jason Dufner 6:20 a.m.: Darrenn Clarke, Ryan Palmer 6:30 a.dddddddddddd.m.: Alex Noren, Padraig Harrington 6:40 a.m.: David Howell, Justin Rose 6:50 a.m.: Nicolas Colsaerts, Matt Kuchar 7 a.m.: Rafa Cabrera Bello, Matthew Southgate 7:10 a.m.: Andy Sullivan, Jason Day 7:20 a.m.: Thomas Pieters, Thongchai Jaidee 7:30 a.m.: Brandt Snedeker, Haydn Porteous 7:40 a.m.: Martin Kaymer, Francesco Molinari 7:55 a.m.: Rory McIlroy, Emiliano Grillo 8:05 a.m.: Webb Simpson, Gary Woodland 8:15 a.m.: Miguel Angel Jimenez, Zach Johnson 8:25 a.m.: Kevin Na, Dustin Johnson 8:35 a.m.: Jim Herman, Tyrrell Hatton 8:45 a.m.: Keegan Bradley, Charl Schwartzel 8:55 a.m.: Sergio Garcia, Patrick Reed 9:05 a.m.: Soren Kjeldsen, Tony Finau 9:15 a.m.: Steve Stricker, J.B. 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