The Oakland Athletics have signed Jason Pridie, who was waived by the Mets a few days ago and exercised his right to become a free agent.

Interesting the Pridie was able to find employment so quickly. Just as interesting, that the great genius Himself — Billy Beane — is who signed him. Makes you wonder: did the brilliant Mets front office blunder? Which of Pridie’s stats is Beane looking at and deeming a market inefficiency? Is Pridie the next Scott Hatteberg? Inquiring minds want to know …

In all seriousness, I like Pridie and believed it made sense for the Mets to keep him around. But, the fact they let him go makes me believe that the Mets will tender a contract to Angel Pagan, since there are no other centerfielders in the organization with MLB experience (OK, maybe you can count Fernando Martinez and Jason Bay). Not that Pridie would have had a shot at starting in 2012, but he was a solid backup. What do you think? Is this a move designed to insure that Captain Kirk Nieuwenhuis moves up the totem pole and gets a legit shot at MLB playing time in 2012? If so I’m happy with that plan.

In other news, both Nick Evans and Taylor Buchholz have officially declared free agency. That doesn’t necessarily mean that they will flee Flushing. But it does mean they are free to explore all options. I know that Evans is not likely to become an everyday player for a championship team, but I do believe he has value to someone. I can see him turning into a Garrett Jones — getting a chance to play fairly regularly for a bad team, putting up surprising power numbers, and making a decent living for himself as part-time MLBer. I also still think he should consider donning the tools of ignorance, just to add some value as an emergency backstop.

As for Buchholz, there is still a question as to whether he will pitch for anyone in 2012, since he is still dealing with depression. I believe that a healthy Buchholz can be a solid middle reliever. But, I also put his need to heal from his mental issues over my desire for him to pitch for the Mets, and if to become mentally healthy it makes more sense for him to play elsewhere, I’m not going to begrudge the guy nor get upset about him leaving. Obviously I have no knowledge of the details of his challenges but I do know that New York is one of the most stressful places in the world to live and work — even if one is not a MLB player. Buchholz seems like a nice kid with legit talent so I hope he gets through this and is able to play baseball again, be it in New York or elsewhere — if that’s what he wants to do.

Two other former Mets free agents are in the news: Omar Minaya and Bobby Valentine. Both, apparently, are being considered for jobs with the Boston Red Sox. Interesting, no?

Mets 6 Phillies 3

Imagine your team losing eight straight, including getting swept in a doubleheader, and you not in the least bit concerned — because your team is two games away from 100 victories on the season? Must be nice.

Mets 4 Dodgers 2

Justin time, Mr. Turner made a pinch-hitting appearance to drive in the game winning run.

Justin Turner ripped a pinch-hit, two-run single in the 8th — perhaps the longest single in Citi Field history — to score Jasons Bay and Pridie to give the Mets a victory over the Dodgers.

Mets 8 Diamondbacks 4

I feel like I keep writing the same headline, over and over.

The Mets complete the sweep, dusting away the D-Backs in an Easter Sunday victory.

According to the lineup distributed by the Mets’ PR department, Jason Pridie is batting eighth and playing centerfield.

Adam Rubin tweeted that Pridie has been promoted and Angel Pagan is likely to be going to the DL.

Pridie was hitting .186 with a .226 OBP through 58 at-bats with Buffalo. However, he has hit 3 HR. I hope he still has that crazy beard.

I keep reading in various places that the Mets have earmarked a portion of their meager winter budget for a fourth outfielder. If this is true, why?

It’s pretty much been established that the 2011 season will not be one seeing the Mets fighting for a playoff spot. Call it “rebuliding”, “assessing and evaluating”, “reconstructing”, or whatever you wish — the bottom line is that the team is not making a conscious effort for the short-term, and is only in the nascent stages of the long-term plan. That said, why would there be any concern about acquiring a fourth outfielder — even if it is low on the list of priorities?

Moreover, don’t the Mets already have a fourth outfielder somewhere in their system? Unless something changes between now and opening day, the starting outfield will consist of Carlos Beltran, Angel Pagan, and Jason Bay. None of these three men need a defensive replacement in the late innings, and none are likely to be lifted for a pinch-hitter in any situation, either. Beltran is the only of the three who may require regular rest; if he’s the starting centerfielder, Pagan will slide into his spot on those days and a the “fourth” outfielder will step into a corner.

Now that we’ve established the regular routine, what do the Mets need from that fourth outfielder?

Ideally, he’s someone who can provide some power on the days Beltran (or Bay) is absent from the lineup. It would help, but is not necessary, if he can cover all three outfield positions; if Pagan turns out to be the starting centerfielder, both Bay and Beltran are capable of handling CF when Pagan needs a break. Additionally, this extra outfielder should also be a potentially strong pinch-hitter. In reality, the Mets probably are best suited with not only a fourth outfielder but a fifth one as well — but that “fifth” would also be versatile enough to handle an infield position (or catch) and have a slightly different skill set (i.e., hit from the opposite side, provide speed if the other has power, etc.).

Taking a cursory look at the Mets 40-man roster and high-level minor leaguers, there are several candidates to fill these roles:

In a bold move to bolster the roster, the Mets claimed Twins outfielder Jason Pridie off waivers; they DFA’d former Rutgers pitcher Jack Egbert to make room for Pridie on the 40-man roster.

Pridie was once a promising prospect in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, who was dealt along with Brendan Harris and Delmon Young to Minnesota in the trade that sent Matt Garza and Jason Bartlett south.

For those unfamiliar with Pridie, he is a lefthanded-hitting outfielder with good speed and excellent defensive skills, but not much offense despite a sweet-looking swing. The 26-year-old has exactly 4 MLB at-bats and is a .276 hitter through over 3500 minor-league ABs. There was a brief point early in his career that the Rays moved him to the infield (third base), but ultimately his skillset was deemed more appropriate to the outfield.

Essentially, he is a slightly younger, inexperienced, free-swinging version of Jeremy Reed or Cory Sullivan (actually, he kind of looks like a mashup of the Reed and Sullivan, doesn’t he?). In 2008 he struck out 152 times in 603 AAA at-bats, while clubbing 16 triples and 13 HRs. Last year his strikeouts dropped to 85 (in 546 ABs), hitting .265 with 9 HRs and 5 triples, but walked only 19 times.

In related news, the Mets are considering bringing back fan favorite Endy Chavez — according to John Paul Morosi. Chavez is reportedly doing very well in his rehab from major knee surgery last year, and could be back on the field as early(?) as April or May. Of course, that’s what the agent of every player returning from surgery says.

From Morosi’s report:

At this point, Chavez and his agents must decide on one of two courses of action: Chavez could sign with a club soon and rehabilitate with the team’s medical staff throughout spring training, or continue his workouts individually and stage a showcase in late March.

Really? A “showcase”? Hey, I love Endy as much as any Mets fan, but he’s not Ben Sheets. Hopefully the knee doctor did as good a job on Endy’s surgery as the spin doctor did with this hype.