MIAMI – Johan Santana and one big inning were all the New York Mets needed.

Santana struck out eight in seven dominant innings, David Wright hit a three-run double and New York opened its season with a 7-2 win Monday over the Florida Marlins.

If only the Mets had Santana last September, when they blew a seven-game lead in the NL East with 17 games left. The collapse became complete when the Marlins scored seven times off Tom Glavine in the first inning on the season’s final day.

Santana – who was traded to the Mets from Minnesota this winter and wound up signing a $137.5 million, six-year contract with New York – didn’t need much help in his anticipated debut.

The two-time Cy Young winner struck out Hanley Ramirez to begin the game and Matt Treanor to end his outing. Santana (1-0) allowed three hits.

Wright and Carlos Beltran each doubled twice for the Mets. Jose Reyes added two hits for New York, which has now won 30 of its last 39 openers.

Diamondbacks 4, Reds 2

CINCINNATI – The defending NL West champions opened the season the way they spent much of the last one: winning a close one.

Brandon Webb pitched six innings, and the light-hitting Arizona Diamondbacks piled up three solo homers in a 4-2 victory that dampened Dusty Baker’s debut as the Cincinnati Reds manager.

Webb (1-0) allowed three hits and a pair of runs in six innings for a breakthrough victory. The right-hander had 34 wins the last two seasons – tied with Carlos Zambrano for most in the NL – but hadn’t gotten a victory in two opening day starts.

Pitching against the team he followed as a youth, the northern Kentucky native finally won an opener with a six-strikeout performance.

A new-look bullpen held onto this one. Brandon Lyon, assuming the role of traded closer Jose Valverde, pitched a perfect ninth for the save, closing out a combined three-hitter.

Chris Young and Eric Byrnes homered off Aaron Harang (0-1), and Jeff Salazar added his third career pinch-hit homer off Jared Burton in a rare show of power by the Diamondbacks’ lineup.

Nationals 11, Phillies 6

PHILADELPHIA – The Washington Nationals took their late-inning act on the road.

Nick Johnson’s tiebreaking RBI double off Tom Gordon highlighted a five-run ninth inning and the Nationals beat the Philadelphia Phillies 11-6.

On Sunday night, Ryan Zimmerman’s solo homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth gave Washington a 3-2 victory over Atlanta in the debut of its $611 million Nationals Park.

No doubt, there was some celebrating on the bus ride to Philly. The Nationals arrived after 2 a.m., but weren’t too tired to spoil the Phillies’ opening-day party.

Reigning NL MVP Jimmy Rollins hit a tying, two-run homer in the seventh, but the Phillies’ bullpen blew it.

Lastings Milledge led off the ninth with an infield single off Gordon (0-1). Johnson’s one-out double to right-center drove in Milledge, who barely scored standing up.

Brewers 4, Cubs 3

CHICAGO – The start of the Cubs’ 100th season since winning the World Series ended like so many seasons at Wrigley Field – with a loss.

Tony Gwynn hit a sacrifice fly in the 10th inning, and the Milwaukee Brewers beat Chicago 4-3. Kosuke Fukudome went 3-for-3, hitting a tying, three-run homer in the ninth off Eric Gagne (1-0), but it wasn’t enough for the Cubs, who haven’t even reached the World Series since 1945.

Pinch-hitter Craig Counsell opened the 10th with a double off Bob Howry (0-1) and moved up on a sacrifice. And after Rickie Weeks was hit by a pitch for the second straight inning, Gwynn delivered the go-ahead fly. David Riske pitched the bottom of the 10th for the save.

Milwaukee’s Ben Sheets and Chicago’s Carlos Zambrano pitched shutout ball, the Cubs ace forced out in the seventh because of a forearm cramp.

The Brewers went ahead in the ninth off Kerry Wood. Ryan Braun hit an RBI single before falling down coming out of the batter’s box, and Corey Hart’s two-run double made it 3-0.

Fukudome excited the crowd of 41,089 when he doubled on his first major league pitch, then singled, walked and homered. Gagne gave up a leadoff single to Derrek Lee and walked Aramis Ramirez before Fukudome’s drive into the right-center field bleachers.

Zambrano allowed three hits in 6 2-3 innings and Sheets gave up two in 6 1-3 innings .

Dodgers 5, Giants 0

LOS ANGELES – Joe Torre was victorious in his debut as manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Brad Penny allowed four hits over 6 2-3 innings in his first opening-day start, Jeff Kent hit a two-run homer off Barry Zito and the Dodgers beat the San Francisco Giants 5-0.

The game was the Giants’ first without Barry Bonds on their roster since 1992. They decided late last season they wouldn’t bring the 43-year-old slugger back for another year. Baseball’s season and career home run leader still hasn’t landed another job.

Pirates 12, Braves 11

ATLANTA – Tom Glavine’s homecoming was long forgotten by the time Pittsburgh finally got the win.

Xavier Nady hit his second homer of the game, a three-run shot in the 12th inning, and the Pittsburgh Pirates overcame a horrific ninth to ruin Atlanta’s home opener, winning 12-11.

The Braves took advantage of four walks and a huge defensive blunder to erase the Pirates’ 9-4 lead. But Nady, who led off the eighth with a homer, lined a 2-0 pitch from Blaine Boyer (0-1) into the right-field seats with two outs and two aboard in the 12th.

Franquelis Osoria (0-1) pitched three innings for his first major league win. But it was in doubt right to the end: Jeff Francoeur homered, Matt Diaz had an RBI single and the Braves had the potential tying run on base when Corky Miller flied out to center.

, ending the 4-hour, 28-minute marathon.