New York ? Carlos Beltran took a big swing, hit a soft popup and barely left the batter’s box. He just stood there sulking, watching – and it only got worse.

Beltran’s lack of hustle allowed the Florida Marlins to turn an embarrassing double play Saturday in a 7-3 victory over the Mets, surely not the kind of effort New York expects from its $119 million center fielder.

“There’s nothing to say. Everyone saw that play. I’m sure he’s embarrassed by it. I just want to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” Mets manager Willie Randolph said.

Juan Encarnacion had four hits and three RBIs, finally providing some run support for Marlins starter Brian Moehler.

Pinch-hitter Paul Lo Duca added an RBI single in the sixth inning, when Florida took advantage of a key error by fill-in first baseman Jose Offerman and scored four times.

Beltran hit a two-run double, but he had an up-and-down performance – appropriately – on his own bobblehead day. The Mets fell back to .500 and last place in the NL East.

The speedy switch-hitter doubled in the first and made a diving catch in the second. But he failed to run out a weak popup in the third, and first baseman Carlos Delgado alertly let the ball drop so he could start a 3-6-3 double play.

“Take a chance. Columbus did, discovered America,” Delgado said. “It just worked out well for us – caught a break there.”

Beltran was booed by the crowd of 41,290 – then cheered after his two-run double with two outs in the fifth gave the Mets a 3-1 lead.

Florida's Juan Encarnacion watches his first-inning single drop. Encarnacion went 4-for-4 in the Marlins' 7-3 victory over the Mets on Saturday in New York.

But at the end of the day, it was his lackadaisical blunder that stood out.

“I was surprised,” Beltran said. “When I hit the ball, first I was assuming he was going to catch the ball. And when he let it drop, it was too late.”

Moehler (3-6) got help from his bullpen after allowing three runs and nine hits in 5 1â3 innings. He was 0-5 in his previous eight starts, getting only 1.58 runs of support per game.

“This is one game that we owed him,” Lo Duca said. “We owe him a couple more.”

The right-hander left with the bases loaded, but Valerio De Los Santos got pinch-hitter Miguel Cairo to ground into an inning-ending double play on his only pitch and leaped for joy on the infield.

Guillermo Mota worked two perfect innings, and Todd Jones finished Florida’s seventh victory in 10 games.

“It all evens out,” Moehler said. “It was good to get some runs.”

Kris Benson (6-3) failed to hold a two-run lead and lost for the first time in six starts. He gave up five runs – three earned – and eight hits in six innings.

Rockies 3, Cardinals 1

St. Louis – Jamey Wright pitched effectively into the seventh inning, and Brad Hawpe’s two-run single in the sixth broke up a scoreless game, leading Colorado over St. Louis. The Rockies have taken two of the first three games in the four-game series against the team with the NL’s best record, moving into position for their first road-series victory of the year.

Astros 4-6, Reds 3-11

Cincinnati – Adam Dunn hit a two-run homer, and Felipe Lopez fell a double short of the cycle as Cincinnati beat Houston, 11-6, earning a doubleheader split and snapping a six-game losing streak. A throwing error by Houston starter Ezequiel Astacio led to four unearned runs.

Brewers 5, Pirates 3

Milwaukee – Rickie Weeks homered late to snap a tie for the second straight game, hitting a two-run shot in the eighth to give Milwaukee a victory over Pittsburgh. Weeks, the Brewers’ top draft pick in 2003, hit a three-run home run in the seventh Friday night with the score tied at 4, and Milwaukee went on to beat Pittsburgh, 8-4.

Phillies 6, Braves 3

Philadelphia – Brett Myers took a shutout into the ninth inning, and Philadelphia beat Atlanta. Pat Burrell and David Bell homered for the Phillies, who won for just the third time in 13 games.

Nationals 4, Cubs 2

Chicago – Jose Guillen homered, Tony Armas won a road start for the first time in more than two years, and Washington beat Chicago for its fifth straight victory. Armas (4-4) hadn’t won a road start since April 10, 2003 – at Wrigley Field – and had been 0-6 in 10 starts since. He went five-plus innings Saturday, allowing seven hits and two runs.

Padres 5, Giants 3

San Diego – Eric Young had three hits, an RBI and a run in his first game in nearly three months, and Ben Johnson had a two-run double for his first big-league hit to lead San Diego over San Francisco. The Giants had their four-game winning streak snapped. Young was activated from the 60-day disabled list earlier Saturday. He dislocated his right shoulder in the home opener April 7.

D’backs 7, Dodgers 5

Los Angeles – Jose Cruz Jr. hit one of four solo homers off Derek Lowe and added an RBI double as Arizona beat Los Angeles to snap a four-game losing streak. Arizona left fielder Luis Gonzalez preserved the victory by diving into the stands to catch Jason Phillips’ bid for a game-tying, two-run homer in the eighth.