Nostalgia is a common theme around the late-in-the-year holidays, as people revisit fond memories with friends and family.
Well, fellow Boston Red Sox fans, allow me to hit you with a strong blast from the past: Michael Chavis has signed with the Cincinnati Reds. ESPN's Kiley McDaniel announced the deal on December 24, and the former top Sox prospect has received an invite to spring training.
A first-round pick in 2014 and a consensus top 100 prospect prior to the 2018 season, Chavis has never quite lived up to the billing. He's accrued just 0.1 bWAR in 357 career games, and he hasn't appeared in the major leagues since the 2023 season with the Washington Nationals.
Still, the 30-year-old utility man has potential, and after roaming around various minor-league systems and NPB over the past several seasons, he could finally get his next MLB chance with the Reds in 2026.
Former Red Sox top prospect Michael Chavis getting one more MLB shot with Reds
Michael Chavis has signed a minor league deal with the Reds that includes an invite to Spring Training, per source.
— Kiley McDaniel (@kileymcd) December 24, 2025
In 2017, Chavis emerged as one of the most promising sluggers in the minor leagues, smashing 31 home runs and 68 total extra-base hits. He went on to make his MLB debut with the Red Sox in 2019, hitting 18 home runs and posting a respectable 96 wRC+.
Unfortunately, that would be the peak of his career to this point, as he struggled mightily with strikeouts over the next two years before Boston dealt him to the Pirates for reliever Austin Davis.
That trade began Chavis' journeyman phase, as he played for the Pirates and Nationals from 2021-23 before settling for some minor-league deals with the Mariners and White Sox. Most recently, he spent time in the Dodgers' farm system and got a late-season cup of coffee with the Chunichi Dragons in Japan.
All in all, it's been a pretty disappointing turn of events for such a promising player, though the legend of Chavis still lives on in Boston to this day. His "Ice Horse" nickname was originally coined on the popular Section 10 Podcast for his proclivity for delivering key hits in clutch moments.
Every team could use someone like that, though the Reds' depth chart is pretty full at the moment. They recently acquired Dane Myers and JJ Bleday to serve as the reserves behind their starting outfield trio, and Sal Stewart, Ke'Bryan Hayes, and Spencer Steer will command the bulk of the playing time on the infield corners.
However unlikely it may be, it'd be an extremely fun story to follow if Chavis can make his way back to the majors and recapture some old Ice Horse magic.