WASHINGTON (Interstat) — CJ Abrams hit a three-run homer in the first inning and Jacob Young added a two-run shot in the eighth as the Washington Nationals defeated the New York Mets 8-4 on Wednesday night at Nationals Park.

Zack Littell (3-4) earned the win, allowing two earned runs on five hits over five innings with three strikeouts. Andrew Alvarez notched his first save with four innings of relief, giving up two runs on two hits while fanning five. Zach Thornton (0-1) took the loss after yielding four runs on four hits in 4 1/3 innings.

Juan Soto homered twice for the Mets, driving in three runs. Brett Baty had an RBI single in the second. Washington’s Keibert Ruiz also drove in a run. The Nationals scored three in the first, added a run in the second, two in the sixth and two in the eighth. New York answered with single runs in the second and third, then two in the eighth.

Attendance was 18,642. Time of game was 2:16. The Nationals improved to 25-25; the Mets fell to 21-28.