Wilson Ramos hit a grand slam against his former team and starter Noah Syndergaard did not allow a hit in the first five innings as the visiting New York Mets whipped the struggling Washington Nationals 6-2 on Tuesday.

The Nationals have now lost the first game of a series 12 times in 14 occasions and are 7-17 since April 19. Syndergaard (3-3) had averaged less than five innings per start in his previous six games at Nationals Park but he went eight on Tuesday while allowing just two runs on four hits.

Ramos, a catcher for the Nationals from 2011-16, smashed a two-out grand slam in the first inning off Washington starter Jeremy Hellickson (2-2).

Amed Rosario began the rally with a one-out single. Two batters later, Pete Alonso singled and Michael Conforto walked before Ramos hit his second homer of the season.

The Mets made it 5-0 in the sixth as Brandon Nimmo had an RBI double off reliever Matt Grace to score Conforto, who led off with a single off Hellickson. Pinch-hitter Dominic Smith hit his first homer of the season off Joe Ross in the ninth for a 6-2 advantage.

Syndergaard did not allow a hit in the first five innings as he won at Nationals Park for the first

time in his career. Wilmer Difo led off the sixth with a single against the Mets starter and

pinch-hitter Adrian Sanchez had a single.

After a double-play grounder, Victor Robles hit a two-run home run to left to trim the margin to 5-2.

It was the third homer in seven career at-bats for Robles against Syndergaard.

The Nationals had just one hit in their previous game, a shutout loss at the Dodgers on Sunday. The Mets have won three of four in Washington this season and seven of the last 10 over the past two seasons.

Syndergaard had six strikeouts and improved to 4-6 in his career against Washington, with a 1-3 mark in D.C. Hellickson allowed five earned runs on six hits with four walks and three strikeouts. His ERA rose from 5.52 to 6.00.

--Field Level Media