NEW YORK – Ben Sheets ruined Johan Santana’s Shea Stadium debut, outpitching the Mets’ new ace in the Milwaukee Brewers’ 5-3 win over New York on Saturday.

Home runs by Bill Hall, Rickie Weeks and Gabe Kapler helped Milwaukee come from behind and Sheets (2-0) overcame a shaky start to help Brewers end a three-game losing streak.

Santana struggled and the Mets’ three-game winning streak was snapped. He lasted 6 2-3 innings and allowed five runs and six hits with two walks, striking out seven and throwing two wild pitches.

Santana (1-2), who allowed 33 home runs with Minnesota last season to lead the league, worked his way out of a number of jams but was hurt by the long ball.

Sheets allowed three runs and five hits in 7 2-3 innings with five strikeouts and two walks. After giving up two runs in the first inning and leaving the bases loaded in the second, he was untouchable, retiring 18 consecutive batters into the eighth inning.

Angel Pagan led off the first against Sheets with a single, moved up on a wild pitch and an infield out and scored on David Wright’s sacrifice fly. Then Carlos Beltran singled and came around on a double by Carlos Delgado.

The Brewers got an unearned run back in the second.

Corey Hart, leading off, reached on an error by Wright and J.J. Hardy walked. Hart took third on Santana’s second wild pitch of the game and scored on Sheets’ bunt. Santana retired the next two hitters, leaving the tying run stranded at second.

Hall tied it for Milwaukee, hitting Santana’s first pitch of the fourth inning for his fifth home run of the season.

It was the second home run in two nights for Hall.

An inning later, Weeks tagged a 2-2 pitch from Santana for his second homer to give the Brewers the lead. Then Kapler hit his third of the season in the seventh, a two-out, two-run shot that followed a walk to Weeks and finished Santana’s day.

Kapler last had three home runs in a season in 2004, when he played for the Red Sox. He’s hit his three homers in 22 at-bats.

Sheets did not allow a hit after the second inning until Wright’s two-out homer in the eighth inning. The homer was Wright’s second and just the fourth in 10 games for New York this season. When Sheets followed the homer by walking Beltran, Brian Shouse relieved for Milwaukee and retired Delgado on a comebacker.

Eric Gagne pitched the ninth for his second save in four chances.

Notes: An MRI on Mets SS Jose Reyes revealed a mild strain of his left hamstring. He is listed as day-to-day. … Sheets batted eighth in the Milwaukee lineup with C Jason Kendall slotted in the No. 9 spot. … Mets Gold Glove 3B Wright committed two errors. … Heman Iribarren made his major league debut for the Brewers with a pinch single in the ninth and then got picked off first base.

AP-ES-04-12-08 1617EDT