Weekly Notes: Ebbs and flows on full display

Here are this week's minor league notes:

• The Red Sox announced their Minor League Players of the Month for April, with Garin Cecchini (pictured) and Anthony Ranuado leading the way by winning hitter and pitcher of the month, respectively. Those match the selections made by SoxProspects.com for April as well. Alex Speier of WEEI.com has the full list of team award winners.
• Allen Webster and Cecchini took home SoxProspects Pitcher and Player of the Week, respectively, for the week of April 29-May 5. Webster turned one of his best outings on May 3 with a season-high nine strikeouts over six innings, while Cecchini went 9 for 24 with three doubles and two home runs during that span.
• It's evident that everything is clicking for Cecchini, as he's hitting .380/.468/.667 so far this season. SoxProspects.com Senior Columnist Jon Meoli caught up with the third baseman to find out why he's enjoying such a torrid start.
• Webster struggled mightily in his second major league start, allowing eight runs on six hits, including three doubles and two home runs, in 1 2/3 innings against the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday. But a longtime scout believes the 23-year-old will rebound and will have a "helluva career," writes ESPNBoston.com's Gordon Edes. 
• After his tough outing, Webster was optioned to Pawtucket while Boston placed closer Joel Hanrahan on the 60-day disabled list to make room for PawSox reliever Jose De La Torre. This marks De La Torre's first major-league promotion, and it's extra special because the 27-year-old grew up a Red Sox fan, as he told MassLive.com's Evan Drellich in an interview. 
• Ranaudo, along with some other Red Sox pitching prospects, has gained national attention as he was the subject of a piece written by CBSSports.com's Danny Knobler on Boston's system-wide pitching revival.
• The PawSox placed outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. on the 7-day disabled list with right biceps tendinitis (retroactive to May 4). This ensured Bradley will not become a free agent until after the 2019 seasons, notes Speier. 
• Another top outfield prospect in Pawtucket made news this week, as rightfielder Bryce Brentz worked with Red Sox legend Dwight Evans, writes Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal. 
• While Bradley was out of the lineup with health issues, PawSox shortstop Jose Iglesias found himself on the bench due to what was originally called a "manger's decision" by Gary DiSarcina, but was later speculated to be for possible disciplinary reasons, as noted by CSNNE.com's Sean McAdam. Iglesias returned to Pawtucket's lineup on Wednesday when he went 1 for 5 against the Gwinnett Braves. 
• Right-hander Kyle Kaminska announced his retirement yesterday. He made six starts in the system this season, his first with the Red Sox, posting a 0-3 record with a 7.18 ERA with 18 strikeouts and five walks.
• Baseball America released its first mock draft for this year's MLB draft. They have the Red Sox using their first pick (seventh overall) on OF/3B Clint Fraizer.  
• To keep up with all of the recent transactions in the system, be sure to check out our Transactions page.  

Photo Credit: Garin Cecchini by Kelly O'Connor

Kevin Pereira is a Staff Writer for SoxProspects.com. Follow him on Twitter @kevinrpereira. 

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