Nick Evans was optioned to Triple-A Buffalo today to make room on the roster for OF Gary Sheffield. The move doesn’t come as a surprise to anyone. In fact, it never made sense to me to keep Evans on the big league roster if he wasn’t going to get significant playing time. The guy just turned 23 years old in January. What good does it do for him to sit on the bench?
Evans needs to be playing every day at Buffalo. The best thing the Mets can do for him is to prepare him to be an everyday player. Hopefully, next season Carlos Delgado will be gone and Evans can take over at first base. Keeping him on the roster as a pinch-hitter and part-time player isn’t in his best interest or the Mets.
The bigger issue will be what the Mets do next Saturday to get Livan Hernandez on the roster. Most likely, they’ll release Marlon Anderson and keep Jeremy Reed as a defensive replacement outfielder. That makes the most sense to me. An option they have is to move one of the relief pitchers off the roster though. Bobby Parnell still has options so they could send him to Buffalo. But I think they like him and believe that he can make a contribution this season. My guess is that Marlon Anderson is waived.
The Mets Report 
Evans might be used as a chip later in the year… He is a pretty solid prospect and could be used to pull in a lefty reliever or maybe another bat for the OF…
I dont see Evans cracking the Mets lineup any time soon… Fernandez will be ready soon and if Murphy plays well then they might not be looking for an outfielder for a while… First Base is an option, but I see the Mets going and getting someone, or drafting some power bats this year to prepare for the departure of Delgado after next season…
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