Weekly Notes: Recaping a franchise-changing week

This week's minor league notes:

• One week ago, the Red Sox were part of one of the biggest trades in baseball history. While most of the focus has been on the talent leaving Boston, our job is to focus on the talent coming back. SoxProspects Executive Editor Chris Hatfield examined the haul from the Dodgers, and Director of Scouting Chris Mellen wrote a detailed report on Allen Webster's (pictured) first start in the organization. Webster is the top-rated prospect received in the deal, debuting at fourth on the SoxProspects rankings. 

• As the minor league season winds down, the Red Sox have begun to ramp up the promotions. Jeremy Hazelbaker, Keury De La Cruz, Brock Huntzinger, and Bryce Brentz were all promoted this week.

• Brentz was on fire in Portland, and was named the Eastern League Player of the Week in his last full week in Double-A. Brentz finished his time with the Sea Dogs batting .296 with 48 extra-base hits in 456 at-bats. 

• De La Cruz has had one of the most impressive seasons in the system, and Cameron White put De La Cruz's success into perspective in this article on the Greenville Drive website. 

• SoxProspects Senior Columnist Jon Meoli talked with Drake Britton about how he turned his season around, and he also caught up with Kolbrin Vitek, who talked about his lost season. 

• The names of the players who will be playing in the Arizona Fall League have started to come out. The group the Red Sox will be sending this year is headlined by Brentz, and also includes Huntzinger, Chris Martin, and Pete Ruiz. Alex Speier of WEEI.com also reported that Ryan Pressly will be heading to Arizona, and the Red Sox are expected to send at least two additional players as well. 

• The Red Sox have been well-represented on the end of season minor league All-Star lists. In addition to being named MVP, Mauro Gomez joined Jose Iglesias and Ryan Lavarnway as International League All-Stars. Seven other Red Sox prospects were named All-Stars in their respective leagues, including Xander Bogaerts and Jackie Bradley, Jr. in the Carolina League. Baseball America posted a list of all the minor league All-Star teams, which includes several familiar faces. 

• After rolling his ankle on August 20, Bradley returned to the lineup on Wednesday, going 0 for 1 with two walks and a stolen base. 

• Michael Olmsted (pictured) has come out of nowhere to be arguably the best reliever in the system this season. The legendary Peter Gammons wrote a fantastic piece on Olmsted and his unique career path. 

• With the departure of Adrian Gonzalez, the Red Sox are now looking for a "first baseman of the future." The best first base prospect in the system is Travis Shaw, and Kevin Thomas of the Portland Herald Press talked with Shaw about how he is motivated by the departure of Gonzalez.

• Many fans do not realize how difficult life is for minor league baseball players. Salem starter Michael McCarthy talked about the tough times, and how great it feels when the hard work finally pays off. 

• After winning the South Division Championship, the GCL Red Sox fell to the GCL Pirates (PIT) in the best-of-three GCL Finals. 

• The PawSox have won seven of their last 10 games, and now hold a three-game lead in the Wild Card race. 

Photo Credit: Allen Webster by Dave Letizi and Michael Olmsted by William Parmeter 

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