NEW YORK — Willie Randolph kept his job — for now. Meanwhile, the New York Mets kept losing.

After their embattled manager had a much-anticipated meeting with ownership today, the Mets got another ineffective outing from Mike Pelfrey and fizzled on offense following a strong start in a 7-3 loss to the Florida Marlins.

"A lot of stuff was taken care of," Randolph said, describing his entire day. "Now, we move on and try to win some ballgames."

Luis Gonzalez hit a three-run double for the young and hungry Marlins (30-20), who moved 10 games over .500 for the first time since Sept. 14, 2005. They lead the NL East despite a major league-low payroll of $22 million on opening day.

Jose Reyes homered twice for the $138 million Mets but committed a two-out error at shortstop in the first that led to two unearned runs.

Pelfrey (2-6) lasted only four innings and dropped his sixth straight start as fourth-place New York (23-26) fell three games below .500 for the first time since Sept. 18, 2005, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

The Mets have lost seven of eight and 10 of 14 overall. With few fans remaining at Shea Stadium in the late innings, a chant of "Fire Willie!" could clearly be heard.

"It's like being booed," Randolph said. "It's the same thing more or less. They're expressing themselves."