Nick Evans has signed a minor-league contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates, presumably with an invitation to spring training.

Good move for Nick, who — ironically — may have an opportunity to platoon with lefthanded-hitting Garret Jones at first base.

I say “ironically” because it was less than two weeks ago that I compared Evans to Jones. Whether Evans gets a fair shot at regular MLB duty is dependent upon what direction the Pirates go to fill first base; there is buzz that they may bring back veteran Derrek Lee for another year. The 36-year-old Lee posted a .982 OPS in 28 games after being acquired from Baltimore at the trade deadline last year.

If the Bucs choose not to fill first base with Lee or another veteran free agent, Evans would probably battle with Matt Hague — who is, essentially, the Pittsburgh version of Nick Evans. Hague is a 26-year-old, righthanded-hitting first baseman / third baseman who has hit well in the minors, flashed some power, but just hasn’t had an extended opportunity to prove himself in the bigs. Sound familiar?

As you know I’ve been a big supporter of Nick Evans, and I’ll continue to quietly root for him. Good luck, Nick.

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 7 Braves 5

The Mets succeed in their starring role as spoilers, taking this weekend series from the Braves and simultaneously jumping into a tie with the Nationals for third place in the NL East.

Mets 12 Braves 2

In four innings against the Wild Card leading Braves, the Mets score double the amount of runs they mustered in four games against the previously fourth-place Nationals. Go figure.

A nice outburst, but it doesn’t really take the sting out of that four-game fold-up in Flushing.

Mets 5 Cubs 4

Back in competition with other second-division clubs, the Mets re-assert their dominance as the elite among the mediocre. Thankfully, the Mets didn’t just trounce the Cubs, but instead let Chicago remain in the ballgame, allowing for a furiously exciting finish.

They may not be able to put many more fannies in the seats, but at least the Mets are keeping the fannies that are, at the edge of their seats.

Braves 6 Mets 5

The final score states that this was a one-run game, but it didn’t feel that way.

Mets 7 Marlins 4

For much of the game, I wasn’t sure whether I was watching two teams that were trying to win, or two teams that were trying to lose.

Marlins 9 Mets 3

The game started out ugly, and got uglier with each succeeding inning.