Minor Notes: Chavis returns; many moves & signings from Sox

Thursday's minor league notes:

• In his return to the playing field after completing his 80-game suspension, SoxProspects.com's top-ranked prospect, infielder Michael Chavis (pictured, left), opened up about his failed drug test and maintains he never knowingly took a banned substance in a piece from Boston Globe correspondent Owen Pence. Since his return, Chavis has played in two games for the Lowell Spinners. He went hitless in his season debut on Monday before smacking an RBI double for his first hit of the season on Tuesday.  
• The Red Sox have signed 27 of their 2018 draft picks, with rumblings that the Sox will sign a 28th soon in 16th round draft pick Chris Machamer, a right-hander out of the University of Kentucky. That report came out on Sunday from CatsPulse.com's Derek Terry.  
• Monday was the start of the 2018-19 international amateur signing season, and the Sox inked outfielder Eduardo Lopez for a $1.15 million signing bonus to lead this year's class. Lopez was ranked 20th in the class by Baseball America and 23rd by MLB.com. Lopez is one of 22 international signings the Sox made, with outfielders Eduardo Vaughn and Bryan Gonzalez notably signing for reported bonuses of $550,000 and $500,000, respectively. Check the trackers at Baseball America and MLB Pipeline for more.

• In order to increase their bonus pool for international amateur signings, the Red Sox traded Greenville center fielder Lorenzo Cedrola to Cincinnati for an additional $1.25 million dollars in cap space. Cedrola was ranked 31st in the July 1 update to the SoxProspects.com rankings. In the latest update to his scouting report, coincidentally coming this week as news broke he had been traded, he projects as an up-and-down, bench outfielder at the MLB level. Cedrola was hitting .318/.350/.427 this year in his second season in the South Atlantic League.
• Tyler Thornburg was activated from the MLB disabled list prior to Boston's win on Wednesday in Washington. He was in a Sox uniform, healthy, for the first time since being acquired by the Red Sox after the 2016 season. His last appearance came on Oct. 2, 2016, with the Milwaukee Brewers. Bill Koch of the Providence Journal details the reliever's shoulder woes and his journey to come back, which included two separate stints in the minors this season with the PawSox and Sea Dogs. 
• Koch also notes that in a corresponding move, right-hander William Cuevas was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket after throwing the final two innings of Tuesday's win over the Nationals. It was his first appearance for Boston since 2016. The 27-year-old is 5-5 with a 3.65 ERA this season with the PawSox.   
• The Red Sox signed Kyle Wren, the son of Red Sox senior vice president Frank Wren, to a minor league deal on Wednesday, as first reported by Chris Cotillo of Masslive.com. Wren slashed .294/.357/.404 in 47 games with Milwaukee's Triple-A affiliate before being released to "seek other opportunities" in June, according to Cotillo. He will provide outfield depth for the PawSox. Wren joins his brother in the Sox system, as Jordan Wren has split the year between Greenville and Salem after being selected by the Sox in the 10th round of the 2017 MLB draft.

• ESPN's Pedro Gomez was on the other side of the microphone this past week, as the veteran reporter answered questions about what it was like to see his son, Rio Gomez (pictured, right), a left-handed pitcher for the Lowell Spinners, playing professional baseball. "It is, without a doubt, surreal," Gomez told the Eagle Tribune's David Willis. Through five games and 13 2/3 innings so far this season, Gomez boasts a 0.66 ERA and has allowed only one earned run in those five appearances while striking out 13.   
• The SoxProspects.com Donation Drive is still going in full force! We need your help to raise the $8,000 we need to keep our website up and running for another year. You can donate at this link. 
• The Boston Red Sox displayed their patriotic nature on their flight after their 3-0 win over the Washington Nationals on Wednesday, with a team picture of everyone decked out in red, white, and blue gear. Chris Sale's outfit took the cake in another travel-day theme for the Sox this season.   

Photo Credit: Michael Chavis & Rio Gomez by Kelly O'Connor

Tommy Cassell is a Contributing Editor for SoxProspects.com. Follow him on Twitter at @tommycassell44. 

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