The latest rumors have the Angels kicking tires on potential back-up catchers, but today they managed to work another trade of a completely different variety. It was announced that they acquired a pitching prospect from the Phillies for a level of compensation that is, well, unique:

Minor League RHP Mike Cisco traded to Angels for no compensation, Phillies announce.

— Jim Salisbury (@JSalisburyCSN) March 17, 2013

That's right, nothing. They got a minor league pitcher for absolutely nothing. No prospects. No money. Not even a sack of baseballs. Ruben Amaro Jr., you've done it again!

The crazy thing about it is that Michael Cisco isn't some 34-yeard old minor league journeyman. He's 25 years old and only a few years removed from being a top 25 prospect in the Philadelphia system. He's obviously not really advanced from there, but it isn't as if he is a total write off. In fact, he just converted to relief in the last year and did a pretty decent job, so there is a chance that he could someday be a back of the bullpen guy. Again, that isn't much, but there is potential value to be had. That value though is something the Phillies just gave away for free... for whatever reason.

What I'd really like to know about this deal is how it came to pass. This is fairly unprecedented, so it must've had some sort of bizarre twists and turns to settle on a compensation of nothing. Did Amaro just call up the Angels and offer him for free? Did Jerry Dipoto call the Phillies and ask about him and Amaro just wasn't in the mood to haggle?  Here is how I like to imagine that phone call going:

Amaro: (answers phone) Hello.

Dipoto: Ruben! How are you doing?

Amaro: I'm fine, Jerry, good to hear from you. How's the family?

Dipoto: Doing wonderful as always. They are truly a blessing. Anyway, I don't want to waste either of our time, I just called with a minor inquiry I wanted to run by you. There's a kid in your system, Mike Cisco and one of our scouts really-

Amaro: He's yours.

Dipoto: Um, what?

Amaro: You want him, right? He's yours.

Dipoto: Oh, well, that's great. I mean, shouldn't we talk price first though? We just like him as depth, so maybe a cash deal-

Amaro: Nah, don't worry about it. Just take him.

Dipoto: For cash, you mean?

Amaro: No, I mean just take him. I don't see what is so hard to understand about this, Jerry.

Dipoto: So, I get him for free?

Amaro: Yup.

Dipoto: Wait a minute. Is this a joke? Am I being punked? Is this really Tony Reagins?

Amaro: No, not a joke. This is Ruben, but I am abig fan of Tony's work.

Dipoto: I can tell.

Amaro: Great doing business with you, Jerry. We'll have Cisco on the first flight to Scottsdale.

Dipoto: Wow, you're paying his airfare too?

Amaro: Yeah, sure, whatever. Look, I've really got to wrap this up. I've got a whole season of Duck Dynasty burning a hole in my DVR and I've gotta get back to it.

Dipoto: Sure, Ruben. No problem. Thanks a lot. Good luck this season.

Amaro: You too, Jerry. Bye now. (Hangs up phone.) Sucker!

Dipoto: (Hangs up phone.) What the hell just happened? Is this real life? Wait a minute, I just had an idea! (Intercoms his assistant) Susan, find out when the next new episode of some show called Duck Dynasty is and setup a reminder for me to call Amaro five minutes after it starts to ask him about taking on Vernon Wells' contract.

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No longer a rotation candidate, Jerome Williams will have to reinvent himself as a reliever in 2013 if he wants to keep his great comeback story alive.

2012 Stats: 137.2 IP, 6-8, 4.58 ERA. 4.15 FIP, 139 H, 35 BB, 17 HR, 98 SO, 1.90 GB/FB, 1.1 fWAR

2013 ZiPS Projections: 129.2 IP, 6-8, 4.58 ERA. 4.31 FIP, 140 H, 33 BB, 17 HR, 86 SO, 0.8 fWAR

2013 Bill James Projections: 118.0 IP, 6-7, 4.58 ERA. 4.38 FIP, 132 H, 29 BB, 16 HR, 77 SO

2013 CAIRO Projections: 129.0 IP, 7-7, 4.60 ERA. 4.36 FIP, 150 H, 35 BB, 17 HR, 83 SO

2013 MWAH Projections*: 80.0 IP, 2-5, 4.61 ERA. 4.73 FIP, 86 H, 24 BB, 12 HR, 53 SO

*The MWAH projections are simply my best guess based off my own personal opinion and research (my wOBA and FIP calculations are approximate)

With spring training baseball up to full speed and headed for the regular season, the news is coming fast and furious. Each rest day, each slap double, each pick-off attempt is being carefully reviewed, studied and analyzed by coaches to help players perform their best, and by opponents searching for any sign of weakness. Like a gardener cultivating his crops, coaches are helping fine-tune their athletes in the hopes of storming the gates on Opening Day and beyond.

There is, however, a third group with little-to-no interest in wins. These men are also watching tapes and analyzing, sometimes more meticulously than a helping hand or a feared foe. These men are the sports press, and it is their duty to bring spring baseball to the masses. However, with less games happening, the analyses are forced to be a little bit more in depth than your typical game recaps. The stat lines and dramas are held to a somewhat higher standard before opening day, often yielding very interesting conclusions.

Take, for example, the recent spring training game against the Padres. Mike Trout hit a double and a triple, but no home runs. How does it happen that the Rookie of the Year and a leading MVP candidate can’t hit a homerun in the pre-season? It’s got to be that extra weight everyone was on about, right? Maybe he feels slighted about his contract raise being too small? No! I’ve got it! He’s upset about Torii Hunter going to Detroit. That’s the ticket! Trout’s done. He’s a rookie flash in the pan. No homers against a pitcher with a near 4.00 ERA and a .500 record? He’s not going to be the same old Trout, that much is certain. The spring training stats don’t lie!

The World Baseball Classic wasn't something I was planning on covering too much seeing how it is kind of lame and features almost no Angels. Well, Erick Aybar has forced my hand because in the course of two pitches, he made himself very relevant.

First and foremost, Aybar got to be at the plate when umpire Angel Hernandez, who is just awful, made the worst strike call in the history of history. I'm not even going to tell you what second mark it is at because it is that obvious. The pitch is a foot off the plate, ends up in the right-handed batter's box and J.P. Arencibia doesn't even bother to frame it because it is such a bad pitcher (although Arencibia generally doesn't frame anything, at least not well). How Aybar didn't go ballistic is beyond me.

The truly amazing part though is what he does on the very next pitch against Craig Kimbrel, no less.  See for yourself:

Yup, Aybar turned around a Kimbrel heater and won the game for the Dominican Republic, putting Team USA on the brink of elimination. So, yay, for the Angels starting shortstop get the team some indirect glory, but boo for him doing it at the expense of Team 'Merica.

We'll have a more comprehensive review of Aybar and the other Angels players in the WBC next week, but this highlight and that awful stike call were just too much to gloss over.

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The March 15th, 2013 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels including Albert Pujols is in decline, Vernon Wells' strong spring shouldn't matter and much more...

The Story: Albert Pujols' slow recovery from knee surgery shows the slugger is in decline.

The Monkey Says: There is nothing particularly new or interesting here other than Morosi obviously just felt the need to troll Angels fans.

The Story: It doesn't matter that Vernon Wells is playing well this spring.

The Monkey Says: Well, it "shouldn't" matter. My fear is that Mike Scioscia and his fetish for veterans is going to find a way to make it matter by shoehorning him into the lineup every chance he gets.

The MWAH prospect countdown finally crosses the finish line with the top prospect in the entire system and only Angel prospect to crack into any of the Top 100 prospect lists.

Kaleb Cowart
Position: 3B  Highest Level: High-A
Bats:Switch Throws: Right  Height: 6'3" Weight: 195 lbs.
Age: 20  Born: 6/2/92

2012 Season Stats
Low-A: 290 PA, .293 AVG, .348 OBP, .479 SLG, 16 2B, 3 3B, 9 HR, 54 RBI, 44 SO, 9 SB, 4 CS, .319 BABIP
High-A: 315 PA, .259 AVG, .366 OBP, .426 SLG, 15 2B, 4 3B, 7 HR, 49 RBI, 67 SO, 5 SB, 3 CS, .316 BABIP

Contact – B-.  He’s made tremendous strides in this department.  Removing a high leg kick as a loading mechanism and shortening his swing has taken him from a D in this department in Orem to a B- against better competition. However, there still are concerns.  When he’s hitting left handed, though the swing is smooth, it is rather lengthy, which leads to a few more swings and misses.  Pitches on the outer half of the plate, I’ve seen him drive to the opposite field with power and ease, and at the same time I’ve seen him try to yank these pitches and completely miss or make weak contact on.  More than anything, Cowart just needs to stay within his game, he has the physical requirements to hit for power without him trying to pull the ball.  Once he realizes this (and I feel like it will come with age and experience), Cowart’s hit tool will improve dramatically and Cowart’s ability to make contact could eventually be above average at the major league level.  This could be a long road though.      

Power – B+.  He drove the ball with authority from both sides of the plate in 2012.  Power and gaps, no matter the environment, he’s got some pop.  Not HR derby or Mark Trumbo type power, but more likely above average corner infielder power.  With such an athletic build (6’3 200+ lbs) Cowart will likely continue to add power through physical premise.  Though there are complaints about the length of his swing (and they are legitimate concerns), the power generated with such swings is undeniable. 

Discipline – B.  Another area Cowart has made tremendous strides in.  What once was a typical Angels approach (terrible K/BB ratio) has turned into a legitimate major league approach.  Perhaps what is most encouraging is that Cowart posted higher BB rates with more advanced competition.  This is promising for his future given that Cowart is about to make the jump to AA where hitters generally can’t pass through without a good measure of plate discipline.  

Speed – B-. Being such a fantastic athlete, foot speed is comes with the territory.  He has above average speed for baseball on the whole, but for a 3B you could say he has VERY good speed.  His first steps defensively are as fast as any prospect and running the bases he has decent first to third speed.  In terms of stealing bases, he has the foot speed to swipe 15 a year.  I don’t envision him building a great deal of muscle given that he’s already got a solid built frame, so the speed should stick for the foreseeable future.  

Arm – A+.  Normally don’t give prospects an A+ in any category unless it’s one of the best I’ve ever seen. Cowart has an elite arm.  It’s easy to see why scouts wanted him to be a pitcher, where he threw 95.  Cowart has what I’d consider one of the best arms in all of baseball among third baseman, major leaguers included.  The velocity I’ve seen him put on the ball when throwing off balance and on the run really made me say “WOW!” and I’m not alone.    

Performance – B+.  I don’t think any prospect in the system has shown as much growth as Cowart has this year.  He went from someone that spent an additional year in Rookie Ball without impressive results to a legitimate Top 100 prospect.  The walks and homeruns in particular were impressive this season, and if the normal development curve of prospects applies here, we could be in for a treat.    

Projection – A.  This is why Cowart was a 1^st round pick.  He has a chance to be a switch-hitting 3B that hits for average, power, works his way on base and plays gold glove level third base.  There’s only one of those in the Major Leagues right now, Chase Headley.  That’s the sort of upside Cowart has.  It may take him several years to realize this potential, but the package is there.  Even if Cowart’s ability to hit for average and consistently make contact never develops, he should still make an above average option at third base in the Major Leagues.   

Estimated MLB Arrival Date – Most fans see him making his way onto the roster around the end of 2013 or 2014 at the latest.  However, given that he’s only 20 years old, hasn’t had a ton of at bats in the minors and will be facing stiff competition for the first time, I’m anticipating Cowart to take a little while longer than most.  I see him breaking into a starting role midway or toward the end of 2015. 

(*As always, the above scouting report is provided by Scotty Allen of LA Angels Insider)

The March 14th, 2013 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels including a high school renames their field after Mike Trout, Hall not likely to make the roster and much more...

The Story: Mike Trout's high school alma mater renamed their baseball field after him.

The Monkey Says: Up next, Millville will just become MikeTroutville. I do like though that they haven't decided on the exact name of the field yet which gives me hope that they will pick a name that is some horrible fish-related pun.

The Story: After suffering a setback with his calf, it is looking like Bill Hall will not make the Opening Day roster.

The Monkey Says: I had him down as a favorite for the final bench spot, which he might get later in the season once he is healthy. Given this news, I'd guess that the competition is now between Brendan Harris, Kole Calhoun and Luis Jimenez, who curiously played first base yesterday, a telltale sign that the team is looking to expand his positional flexibility so that he is a more useful bench candidate.