When the ball is, quite literally, bouncing your way, all you can do is shrug

DENVER -- When you’re as hot as the Rockies’ Troy Johnston, even the field itself is on your side. Through six innings Monday night against the Astros at Coors Field, Johnston had charmed singles and doubles, and a good old-fashioned towering home run to put himself close to a cycle.

Johnston’s final at-bat was a hard grounder that nearly hit the bag but was put away for the final out of the eighth. But Johnston made a key eighth-inning defensive contribution to the 9-7 victory, with a pinpoint throw from right field to the plate that discouraged Yainer Diaz from attempting to score from third and kept the Rockies’ lead at two runs.

Leading off the second inning against Astros starter Cody Bolton, Johnston bunted toward third base. While third baseman Carlos Correa waited for the ball to roll foul, it perched itself right on the chalk and stayed there for a single.

Coors Field charmed Johnston again during the Rockies’ eight-run fifth when he came up with the score tied, two out and three runs in. Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña was behind second base for Johnston’s bouncer, hoping to end the frame. But the ball took a fortuitous bounce off the bag into center field for an RBI double that gave the Rockies the lead.

When the play was over, Johnston smirked and shrugged.

By the time the frame was over, the Rockies had sent 14 batters to the plate, with the biggest hit being a TJ Rumfield two-run triple, and had an 8-3 lead.

In the sixth, Johnston launched his second home run of the year, a towering shot to right off Ryan Weiss, who was on the mound for the shrug-worthy double. Upon entering the dugout, having put the Rockies up 9-4, Johnston’s previously shrugged shoulders were draped with the purple faux fur home run coat.