A top Cubs' offseason acquisition may have just pitched his last game for the team

If there was ever a perfect time to be faced with the hard realization that your team has a problem, this is it. With two days until the trade deadline, Chicago Cubs reliever Ryan Pressly's struggles continued in dramatic fashion, with the veteran serving up a back-breaking grand slam to Andrew Vaughn in the middle innings of Tuesday's 9-3 loss.

The homer raised Pressly's ERA on the year to 4.35 - and an unsightly 5.65 over his last 15 appearances. Opponents are hitting .288 against the 36-year-old, the highest mark of his big-league career. After shaking off early-season struggles that quickly cost him the closer's job, Pressly's role on this team once again feels very much up in the air as Jed Hoyer looks to make major additions in the next 48 hours.

As Cubs eye deadline pitching additions, Ryan Pressly feels expendable

Chicago's pitching staff, on the whole, hasn't been good over the last two weeks - a stretch in which the Cubs have gone 5-6, dropping two games behind Milwaukee in the Central. Cubs pitchers have a 5.16 ERA, a mark that ranks 26th in baseball during that span.

Hoyer already started re-shaping his roster, designating first-half godsend Chris Flexen for assignment Tuesday. The right-hander's overall numbers look solid: a 3.09 ERA across 43 2/3 innings of work, but all signs pointed to a steep decline of late. Over the last month, he made just six appearances and was tagged for 22 hits in 15 2/3 innings of work - including a half-dozen home runs. That stretch ultimately cost him his spot on this Cubs team.

With the bullpen near the top of the Cubs' deadline shopping list, Pressly could easily find himself on the chopping block in the coming days if they need to clear a spot on the 26-man roster for a new face. If this were his first rough patch, maybe the leash would be longer, but it's been an inconsistent up-and-down with him all year and I'd be shocked if he survives the trade deadline.

Chicago will look to salvage Wednesday's series finale and avoid a sweep at the hands of their biggest rival. Let's hope Shota Imanaga can bounce back from one of his worst starts in a Cubs uniform opposite Brewers' right-hander Freddy Peralta - dropping three straight to Milwaukee heading into the deadline? Well, I don't know if the fanbase can emotionally handle that.