Chicago Cubs Around the Farm 4/23/23: Matt Mervis, Luis Vazquez, and Kevin Made Mash

I'm always super happy when Luis Vazquez can be recognized for a Biggest Yes award. Granted, it has only happened twice now. However, it's cool to give some props to a guy who is tied for third in the Cubs' farm system with five Biggest Yikes awards. The two home runs Vazquez hit started the Smokies' scoring and capped it off.

Now, on the year, Vazquez is slashing .341/.362/.614 with three home runs and eight RBIs in 12 games. He's a swing-first and ask-questions-later guy (2 BB vs. 16 K), but the approach is working for him thus far this year. We'll take that.

Biggest Yikes: Luis Verdugo — 0/5, 5 SO, 9 LOB, E

Oh no. This is a brutal stat line for Verdugo, who has been struggling all season long. Not only did he strike out in all five of his plate appearances, but he also left a ton of runners on base in the process. Luckily, the Smokies didn't need the extra runs, but still it would have been nice for Verdugo to — you know — do something productive. On the season, Verdugo is slashing just .125/.171/.188 with 20 strikeouts in 34 plate appearances. Oof.

High-A South Bend: 8-10 Loss to Great Lakes Loons

Biggest Yes: Kevin Made — 4/5, HR (1), 4 RBI, 2 R, CS

Just like I said I was happy to give Luis Vazquez a Biggest Yes award because he is tied for third in the Cubs' system in Biggest Yikes awards, I'm even more thrilled to recognize Kevin Made. If you've been following Around the Farm for a while, you know that Kevin Made earns Biggest Yikes... a lot. He leads the farm system with eight of them.

So seeing Made put up a line like he did in this one is huge. Made, my 47th-best Cubs prospect, has been lagging behind with his development at the plate, but he's now slashing .293/.431/.488 on the year. He has walked (8) nearly as many times as he has struck out (10). His three-run home run in this game came in the eighth inning to get South Bend back in the game; the Cubs just couldn't capitalize on that. Still, good for Made.

Biggest Yikes: Bailey Reid — 0.0 IP, 1 H, 3 BB, 4 ER

To Reid's credit, some of his earned runs crossed home with Joe Nahas on the mound. Now that we got that credit out of the way, Reid struggled tremendously in this game. He gave up two straight walks, a double, then another walk before he was pulled from the game. At that time, the Loons went up 8-5.

After Reid was pulled, Nahas let the two base runners left from Reid's time on the mound score, too, pushing the Loons up to 10 runs. The Cubs couldn't recover from that, even with Made's three-run home run in the eighth.

Low-A Myrtle Beach: 8-4 Victory Over Augusta Greenjackets

Biggest Yes: Moises Ballesteros — 3/4, BB, 2 R, SB

In a game with eight runs scored, it feels weird giving the Biggest Yes to someone who didn't account for an RBI. Still, Ballesteros got on base in 80 percent of his plate appearances. He stole a base, and he came around to score two of the Pelicans' runs. Ballesteros's bat continues to showcase the potential that makes him my 33rd-best prospect. He's now hitting .289 with a .891 OPS on the season, and he's getting on base nearly 40 percent of the time. That'll play.

Biggest Yikes: Koen Moreno — 2.1 IP, 2 H, 5 BB, 2 ER, 1 SO, 1 HR

This game was another example of Moreno being Moreno. The Cubs' fifth-round pick in 2020 has typically struggled with command in his professional career, and this game was no different. Moreno started the game with a walk but quickly erased it with a double play and strikeout.

Then, in the second inning, Moreno walked four more batters, getting one run across the board for Augusta. He gave up a home run in the third inning and ended up getting pulled right after that. It gives Moreno his fourth-career Biggest Yikes award.