NEW YORK (AP) — Wilmer Flores hit a go-ahead, three-run homer and the New York Mets rallied past the Washington Nationals 9-7 on Thursday night in the opener of a pivotal four-game series between the top teams in the NL East.

Travis d’Arnaud, Jose Reyes and Asdrubal Cabrera also went deep for New York in a slugfest that featured eight home runs — 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 shaved Washington’s division lead to three games — two in the loss column.

The victory provided an emotional pick-me-up for the Mets, who announced sobering news before the game: Struggling pitcher Matt Harvey has symptoms consistent with thoracic outlet syndrome and might require season-ending surgery to treat a serious condition that has jeopardized the careers of other major league pitchers.

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