Cubs reportedly make much-needed bullpen swap, creating more trade deadline buzz

It's been a rapid fall from grace for Porter Hodge in Chicago.

Initially pegged as the replacement closer for a struggling Ryan Pressly, Hodge's tenuous grip on a roster spot appeared to reach a breaking point following Tuesday's disastrous outing against the Minnesota Twins, when the reliever allowed six earned runs in 1/3 of an inning. All balls put in play against him had an exit velocity of over 96.9 MPH

Hodge simply hasn't been the same since returning from a month-long absence due to an oblique strain. It appears the Cubs have seen enough, as they're calling Ethan Roberts up from Triple-A Iowa. There's no confirmation currently that Hodge is the one he's replacing, but all signs point to a one-for-one swap between Chicago and Iowa.

Porter Hodge demotion accelerates Cubs' need for bullpen reinforcements

The Cubs were likely always going to look to acquire a reliever at the trade deadline, regardless of Hodge's performance in his return from his oblique injury.

Daniel Palencia has run away with the closer's gig and Brad Keller has been excellent as the primary set-up man, but there's an obvious need for another high-leverage arm, even with Chris Flexen, Drew Pomeranz, Ryan Brasier, and Caleb Thielbar all posting sub-2.00 ERAs in the middle innings.

Roberts isn't that — he's allowed a 5.40 ERA (5.84 FIP) in 8 1/3 big league innings this year — but he is a quality arm already on the 40-man roster. As the Cubs try to sort through Hodge's struggles away from the major league limelight, Roberts should be able to hold down the fort.

Even with heavily-rumored trade target Shelby Miller hitting the IL, plenty of available targets like Aroldis Chapman, David Bednar, Jake Bird, and others will be garnering the attention of Jed Hoyer and company in the coming weeks.

As for Hodge: this likely demotion doesn't rule him out for the rest of the season. He may still be feeling some lingering issues with his oblique, and a trip to Iowa can allow him more rest while working on any mechanical flaws that arose due to the injury.

For the time being, though, Roberts will be tasked with holding down the fort.

Update: Roberts is officially replacing Hodge, though the latter will not return to Iowa. Instead, he's heading back to the injured list.