Gonzalez gets a laugh out of batting second

TORONTO -- Hard-swinging Rockies left fielder Carlos Gonzalez laughed when he saw manager Walt Weiss put him second in the Rockies' batting order against the Blue Jays on Wednesday night.

Often the No. 2 hitter is a bat-handler who can bunt or perform the hit-and-run. Let's say Gonzalez, with 21 home runs and 57 RBIs after a solo shot in the fifth inning of Wednesday's 5-2 loss, has no interest in filling that job description, nor does Weiss want him trying to be that type of hitter.

"It's different, but I really don't mind, because I'll try to do the same thing," Gonzalez said. "We'll just move everybody up a little bit and try to get that extra at-bat."

Gonzalez entered with 21 games from the No. 2 spot in his career. He has more experience in the leadoff spot, 107 games, where former manager Jim Tracy hit him early in his career.

"I've toyed with the idea of hitting CarGo second in American League parks, when you have the No. 9 guy that's an offensive guy, not a pitcher, three spots in front of that two-hole," Weiss said. "I decided to roll with it tonight. Maybe it comes down to the situation where he gets that extra at-bat."