Kris Bryant's hand injury leads to rare moment for Anthony Rizzo

CINCINNATI -- An X-ray on Chicago Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant's left hand was negative after he was hit by a pitch from reliever Drew Storen in the ninth inning of the Cubs' 13-9 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night.

"He got me good," Bryant said afterward. "It was more flesh [than bone]."

Bryant was hit on the outside of his left hand not far from the pinkie that has been hurting him since last month after a slide into third base. He's considered day-to-day after Tuesday's hit-by-pitch.

"I've been trying to make my hand feel better and of course you get hit in the same area where it's not feeling too great," Bryant said. "It's just frustrating."

Cubs manager Joe Maddon said it's unlikely Bryant will play on Wednesday but was hopeful he wouldn't miss more than a day or two.

"If he's going to miss time, I don't think it's a long time," Maddon said.

The injury caused a ripple effect as the Cubs took the field in the bottom of the ninth holding a comfortable lead. Maddon was out of position players, save for catcher Rene Rivera. He pulled Bryant in order to get ice on his hand, which meant he needed a new third baseman.

"I thought it would be wise to play [Anthony] Rizzo at third base to be the first Cub [left-hander] to play there since the 1800s," Maddon explained with a smile.

Rivera was inserted at catcher while regular catcherAlex Avilatook over for Rizzo at first base. The left-handed Rizzo moved across the diamond for his first action at third in his career. The ball never found him, but it was enjoyable nonetheless.

"He was so excited," Maddon said. "It was either Avila at third, which is no fun. Or Rizzo at third, Avila at first, which is fun. And that's how we did it."

Rizzo is the first left-hander to man third base for the Cubs since George Decker in 1895. The reigning MVP of the National League knows Rizzo won't forget who took over for him when he had to leave due to injury.

"His Twitter bio is going to say he's a third baseman," Bryant said with a sigh.