One stat is all you need to inform the Cubs smartest deadline strategy

Jed Hoyer had good moments over the course of the offseason, agreeing to deals with key pieces like Craig Counsell, Shota Imanaga, and Cody Bellinger, but the Chicago Cubs President of Baseball Operations fielded a flawed roster entering the year, and their 34-38 record shows just that.

The Cubs have one of the worst catching situations in the majors that desperately has to be addressed. They have Christopher Morel playing third base because nobody else is a good enough hitter to warrant every day at-bats who can also play the hot corner. The biggest red flag for this Cubs team is its bullpen, as USA Today's Bob Nightengale's statistic shows.

"Just how much has the Chicago Cubs’ back end of the bullpen struggled this year? The Cubs would be 50-19 if games lasted only seven innings this season. Instead, they are 33-36."

All the Cubs have done since Nightengale published his article is lose two of their next three games. One of the games that they lost was scoreless after seven, but the Cubs bullpen allowed three runs to score in the next two innings to lose 3-0. Obviously, they couldn't win without scoring a run, but the bullpen imploded late once again. This has become routine and is something Hoyer is going to have to address at the trade deadline.

Cubs trade deadline strategy is abundantly clear as evidenced by appalling statistic

The Cubs' bullpen has a 4.39 ERA which is good for 23rd in the majors. Each of the seven teams below them is not only out of a postseason spot as of now, but they're all under .500. The same can be said about the two teams directly in front of them.

The Cubs have 15 blown saves which leads the National League. The only teams with as many or more than them are the sub-.500 Tigers and the 19-54 White Sox. The teams with 14 blown saves are both under .500.

The Cubs will go absolutely nowhere if their late-game bullpen is as bad as it has been. They have the starting pitching necessary to be a postseason team as evidenced by their sixth-best starting pitching ERA in the majors, but their bullpen is a flat-out joke.

Several of Chicago's key relievers have missed time due to injury which obviously hurts, but the bullpen has been an issue all season long. Even a guy like Hector Neris who was pitching well to begin the year but recently imploded was carrying an unsustainably-high WHIP that suggested he was due for regression. Sure enough, it came.

Hopefully, the Cubs can hold the fort for a little while longer and remain in the Wild Card race so Hoyer can make the needed deadline deals. Their top priority has to and almost certainly will be improving this bullpen. It'd be malpractice not to, as this statistic clearly shows.