Roster depth paying off for Mets

When Jason Pridie reported to Mets camp last year, he greeted Triple-A Buffalo manager Ken Oberkfell, who knew Pridie all too well.

"He was saying that I crushed him," Pridie recalled Saturday, smiling. "That was probably my best team I played against [in 2009, while with the Twins' Triple-A Rochester affiliate]."

Pridie continued: "It kind of shows that you're not only playing for your own team. You're playing for other teams, and you don't even know it's happening."

The 27-year-old, filling in for Angel Pagan as the Mets' primary centerfielder, has been alerting the rest of Major League Baseball of his existence these past couple of weeks. Saturday night, he helped the Mets clinch this Bankruptcy Bowl series against the Dodgers, contributing a double, two singles and a sacrifice bunt to the Mets' 4-2 victory at Citi Field.

Pridie exemplifies what these Mets must have going for them if they are to have any chance of staying in the race. They need roster depth. When given the opportunity, players must perform as if the whole league is watching them.

That's how Dillon Gee pitched Saturday night. Called upon as an emergency starter after the injury-prone Chris Young "couldn't get loose" (the Mets' wording), Gee danced with danger like Bruce Willis in a "Die Hard" movie. The rookie righthander allowed two runs in 5 1/3 innings, stranding nine men on base and holding the Dodgers to one hit in 10 at-bats with runners in scoring position.

If Young needs to make his second visit to the disabled list this season, then Gee already has put himself on track to rejoin the Mets' starting rotation. Recent call-up Justin Turner, meanwhile, ripped the game-winning hit, a two-run single in the eighth.

Mets ownership fired general manager Omar Minaya at the conclusion of last season, and that was the right call. The organization needed a fresh start.

Yet Minaya and his lieutenants, consistent with their scouting background, did have a knack for finding the occasional hidden treasure, from Jose Valentin to Fernando Tatis to R.A. Dickey. You can add Pridie to that list, even if he shortly reverts back to the replacement-level player he appeared to be. He already has contributed.

Minaya's downfall came in managing his roster, and that's where Sandy Alderson is a clear upgrade. By instituting a culture of accountability, Alderson has let the players know, through his actions, that jobs are here for the taking. Gee, because he pitched well during Young's first stay on the disabled list, got to stay in the major leagues while D.J. Carrasco -- despite his two-year contract -- packed his bags for Buffalo.

Pagan, after experiencing a setback with his oblique strain, will probably miss a minimum of two more weeks, according to manager Terry Collins. If Pridie continues to display ability with his bat and his glove, he surely won't be the person moved to make room for Pagan on the roster. Since Pridie is out of minor-league options, he'd have to clear waivers to return to Buffalo. Other teams now have seen what he can do, so Pridie would wind up with another organization.

"You always hear that," Pridie said. "Every organization tells you, 'We want things to work out, but if you play for another team, good for you.' "

Between now and Pagan's return, it's incumbent upon Willie Harris to show the Mets -- and the rest of the baseball world -- what he has to offer.

That's the way it should work on baseball teams. That's the way it's finally working with the Mets.