Wilmer Flores hit a go-ahead, three-run homer and the Mets rallied past the Washington Nationals 9-7 on Thursday night in the opener of a pivotal four-game series.
Jose Reyes, Travis d’Arnaud and Asdrubal Cabrera also went deep for New York in a slugfest that featured eight home runs – the most in the eight-year history of Citi Field.
The second-place Mets improved to 7-1 on their 11-game homestand leading into the All-Star break and cut Washington’s division lead to three games.
The Rockies beat the Phillies 11-2
Ryan Howard had a home run for the Phillies in the second, his 12th of the season and 369th of his career to tie Ralph Kiner and former Rockies first baseman Todd Helton for 78th place on the career list. Maikel Franco doubled and singled but had his home run streak snapped at four games.
The Rockies’ Trevor Story tied an NL rookie record for most home runs before the All-Star break, homering twice and boosting his total to 21.