PHILADELPHIA - Dillon Gee made one mistake after another, and paid for all of them.
Ryan Howard and Michael Young hit back-to-back home runs, Cliff Lee came within one out of a complete game and the Philadelphia Phillies beat Gee and the New York Mets 8-3 on Tuesday night.
"I was just living in the wrong part of the strike zone," Gee said. "I don't know what else to say about it. Just forget about it. I've got another one Sunday."
John Mayberry Jr. also went deep off Gee in the third inning and Young had three hits, missing the cycle by a double.
The Phillies (3-5) roughed up Gee (0-2) for seven runs and 10 hits in three innings. It was his shortest career outing in 51 starts.
"He'd miss his target by 2 feet," Mets manager Terry Collins said. "It was just one of those nights for him. It was just one of those things where everything was up."
Lee (2-0) allowed three runs 鈥� two earned 鈥� and eight hits, striking out six in 8 2-3 innings. The 2008 AL Cy Young Award winner didn't win his second game until July 31 last year.
John Buck hit his fourth homer in eight games for the Mets, who fell to 5-3.
For the first time since 1980, Philadelphia played New York in three professional sports on the same day. The NHL's New York Islanders beat the Philadelphia Flyers 4-1 and the NBA's Brooklyn Nets defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 104-83.
The Phillies jumped on Gee for four runs in the second. Young and Domonic Brown hit hard singles before Mayberry ripped a two-run double down the left-field line. With two outs, Lee hit a sharp single up the middle to score Mayberry. Jimmy Rollins then lined an RBI double to right.
Howard and Young homered on consecutive pitches in the third and Mayberry connected one out later. It was the first homer this season for all three hitters.
Howard's drive went to left-centre and Young also went opposite field to right for his first homer with the Phillies. Mayberry's shot hooked down the left-field line.
Gee became the first Mets pitcher to allow three homers in one inning since Johan Santana against the New York Yankees on June 8, 2012.
"Terrible night, but you've got to move past it," Gee said. "It's happened to me before, I've had a bad inning before. I'll bounce back."
Buck hit his second opposite-field drive in two nights. He connected off Roy Halladay in a 7-2 win Monday night.
Mayberry, starting against a righty instead of the left-handed hitting Laynce Nix, finished 2 for 4 with three RBIs. Young was 3 for 4 and drove in two. He hit an RBI triple in the fourth for his third hit. Needing a double for the cycle, Young grounded out in the seventh.
Lee was a hard-luck pitcher last year, going 6-9 despite a 3.16 ERA. He nearly recorded his first complete game since Sept. 15, 2011. He had six that season.
Phillies manager Charlie Manuel got booed when he went to the mound to pull Lee and heard some more when he jogged back to the dugout.
"Obviously with one out, I wanted to stay in," Lee said. "But we won the game. That's all that matters."
NOTES: The six combined letters in the last names of the two starters tied a record for fewest. It's happened 22 other times. ... Gee's previous shortest start was 3 2-3 innings in Philadelphia on Aug. 3, 2011. ... A crowd of 38,305 was the fourth straight non-sellout at Citizens Bank Park. ... RHP Jeremy Hefner (0-1, 1.50 ERA) pitches for the Mets against RHP Kyle Kendrick (0-1, 7.94) on Wednesday night.
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