Jacob Webb injury deals a crippling blow to an already struggling Cubs bullpen

Of late, it's been near-impossible to find any Chicago Cubs reliever capable of turning in clean outings on a regular basis. The guy you probably felt best with was closer Jacob Webb. So, naturally, the right-hander's status is now uncertain after he took a 102.5 MPH line drive off his right forearm in the ninth inning of Wednesday's 9-5 loss.

Manager Craig Counsell said x-rays were negative, but that doesn't mean we'll see Webb back on the mound in short order, either. It's the latest blow to a Cubs bullpen that, well, frankly I can't even say it's running on fumes - it's beyond that. Since Aug. 19, Chicago relievers have a cumulative -0.5 fWAR that ranks 29th in baseball and a 5.79 ERA that ranks 26th.

It's fair to call this Cubs team a one-trick pony. Their strength is their offense, headlined by the three-headed monster of Pete Crow-Armstrong, Alex Bregman and Seiya Suzuki. It's the most potent group of position players in the league. The pitching staff, meanwhile, riddled with injuries all season long, comes in at the opposite end of the spectrum.

Don't get me wrong, any team would be hard-pressed to overcome the losses of Cade Horton, Justin Steele and Ben Brown. Craig Counsell and Tommy Hottovy have done what they can with what they have and, until recently, there were some nice success stories there. But the pixie dust seems to be wearing off at the worst possible time as Chicago looks to lock up a postseason spot.

Getting Daniel Palencia right just became more important than ever

We don't yet know how long Webb will be sidelined, but it's hard to imagine anyone other than Daniel Palencia getting ninth-inning duties in his absence - which is hardly an encouraging thought given how shaky he's looked since returning from the injured list.

It's not like Webb has been lights-out recently (since his scoreless innings streak was snapped, he's the not-so-proud owner of a 21.00 ERA (7 ER in just three innings). But Palencia has looked lost on the mound, the most glaring example being his balk after entering Tuesday's game in a critical spot and then allowing things to snowball on him.

Can the hard-throwing right-hander and WBC closer for Venezuela return to form and anchor the Cubs' bullpen? He may have no choice because reinforcements aren't coming to save this group - at least not immediately - and he's got the most

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