J.B. Shuck was one of two Astros with three hits in Friday's victory. (Pat Sullivan/AP)
? Box score | Photos from Minute Maid Park
The Astros have spent this tortured season traipsing through the baseball gods? forsaken places they?ve never seen and vow never to visit again.
For a welcome change Friday night, the Astros pulled off a franchise first that wasn?t of the slap-the-forehead-in-despair variety.
The first six Astros hitters banged out hits, sending the home team on its giddy way to an 11-2 laugher over the Colorado Rockies.
The Astros had played 7,965 games leading into Friday night?s onslaught in front of an announced crowd of 22,467. Leave it to the losingest team in franchise history (55-102) to be the first one to start a game with six consecutive hits ? a show of support that Astros righthander Brett Myers reciprocated by limiting the Rockies to one run on four hits in six innings.
?This is what you want every game to be like,? said Astros third baseman Chris Johnson, who contributed one of the first-inning hits and made a mark-it-with-an-exclamation-point diving stop in the sixth. ?Our starter did well, we hit the ball well, we scored runs. It?s the game you want to play every night.?
With the first four hitters in the order going a combined 9-for-17 with three walks and all nine starters getting at least one hit apiece, the Astros extended the losing streak of the Rockies (70-87) to nine games. Rookies J.B. Shuck and J.D. Martinez had three hits apiece, while veteran Carlos Lee became the ninth player in franchise history to drive in four or more runs in consecutive games.
?That?s pretty exciting,? said Shuck, who scored three runs and had a triple. ?When you get six hits in a row, you?re going to score runs. That?s going to start the game off good and get your pitcher to settle down and be able to throw with confidence.?
Everyone in on the act
If the Minute Maid Park roof hadn?t been open at game time, it probably would have caved in on rookie Rockies lefthander Drew Pomeranz. In just 46 pitches spread over two innings, Pomeranz (1-1) inflated his ERA from 1.69 to 5.68.
A five-run first inning began with Shuck flaring a single off the glove of shortstop Tommy Field in shallow left field. Angel Sanchez ended an extra-base hit drought of 106 plate appearances dating back to July 6 with a run-scoring double to left. The hit parade continued with a single to center by Martinez, a two-run double to center by Lee, and a screaming line-drive double off the left-center field wall by Matt Downs.
?You don?t want to make the first out,? Downs said. ?You?ve got a lot of pressure on you. It?s one of those things where everybody got a pitch to hit and we took advantage of it.?
The Astros had started a game with five consecutive hits multiple times. The hit they needed to make franchise history came in the form of a run-scoring, line-drive single to left by Johnson.
?Cool,? Johnson said. ?Do I get a plaque or something??
The Astros tacked on one run in the second, two in the fourth, one in the fifth, sixth and seventh. They did all that damage with only one home run ? a sixth-inning, solo shot that gave former Rockies shortstop Clint Barmes 12 on the season.
Myers (7-13) knew just what to do with the lead, attacking the strike zone and making the Rockies earn what they got. After an infield single by Eric Young Jr. and a run-scoring double by Dexter Fowler to start the first inning, Myers stopped the Rockies offense dead in its tracks.
Looking within
?I wish I started out this way this year,? Myers said.
Since a losing steak of seven that ran from June 29-Aug. 22, Myers has gone 4-0 with a 1.29 ERA in his past five starts. An ERA that was at 5.03 as late as June 16 is down to 4.31.
?Hard times?? Myers said. ?Shoot, I?ve been through worse than this. Once you go through it once, you know how to handle it a second time. Hopefully it doesn?t happen too often.?
Astros manager Brad Mills said it was a matter of Myers taking self-inventory and deciding, ?This isn?t me.? The tortured season will not be for naught if the Astros of the future bear any resemblance to the team that had its merry way with the Rockies on Friday.
steve.campbell@chron.com
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(Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)
Carlos Lee tosses his bat as he watches his line drive to center field fall in for a two-run double in the first inning. (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)
Colorado's Chris Nelson, left, rounds the bases in front of Astros third baseman Chris Johnson after hitting a solo homer in the seventh inning. (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)
Astros starter Brett Myers improved to 7-13 after allowing one run in six innings. (Bob Levey / Getty Images)
Rockies shortstop Thomas Field fires the ball to first base for an out on Clint Barmes in the sixth inning. (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)
J.B. Shuck heads for home plate to score from first base on Angel Sanchez's double in the first inning. (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)
Astros catcher Humberto Quintero is helped up by home plate umpire Tony Randazzo after taking a foul ball off his mask. (Bob Levey / Getty Images)
Rockies third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff throws to first base after fielding a hard hit ball by Chris Johnson in the eighth inning. (Bob Levey / Getty Images)
J.B Shuck singles to right field in the fifth inning. (Bob Levey / Getty Images)
Clint Barmes, right, receives a high-five from third base coach Dave Clark after hitting a home run in the sixth inning. (Bob Levey / Getty Images)
Rockies center fielder Dexter Fowler makes a running catch. (Bob Levey / Getty Images)
Rockies relief pitcher Esmil Rogers wipes his face after giving up an RBI single to Carlos Lee in the fourth inning.
(Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)
Rockies third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff makes a diving attempt on a sharply hit ball in the first inning. (Bob Levey / Getty Images)
Colorado's Eric Young Jr. races down the third-base line to score from first base on a Dexter Fowler double in the first inning. (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)
Carlos Lee hustles into third base. (Bob Levey / Getty Images)
J.B. Shuck, right, high-fives Carlos Lee after the Astros' 11-2 win over the Rockies. (Bob Levey / Getty Images)
Rockies third baseman Chris Johnson throws to first base to retire Chris Iannetta in the ninth inning. (Bob Levey / Getty Images)
Astros left fielder Carlos Lee (45) smiles at Rockies catcher Wilin Rosario (12) as he is intentionally walked in the seventh inning. (Johnny Hanson / Houston Chronicle)
Astros third baseman Jimmy Paredes (38) misses a ground ball. (Johnny Hanson / Houston Chronicle)
Astros second baseman Jose Altuve (27) reacts next to home plate umpire Brian Gorman in the third inning after Altuve was hit with a pitch by Rockies starting pitcher Alex White. (Johnny Hanson / Houston Chronicle)
Astros second baseman Jose Altuve's left arm is looked at by a trainer and manager Brad Mills. (Johnny Hanson / Houston Chronicle)
Astros left fielder J.D. Martinez (14) is hit by a pitch. (Johnny Hanson / Houston Chronicle)
Astros third baseman Jimmy Paredes (38) misses a ground ball hit by Colorado Rockies third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff. (Johnny Hanson / Houston Chronicle)
Astros' Carlos Lee runs to first base after hitting a three-run double off of Colorado's Alex White. (Johnny Hanson / Houston Chronicle)
Astros' Carlos Lee hits a three-run double. (Johnny Hanson / Houston Chronicle)
Astros right fielder Brian Bogusevic (19) catches a fly ball hit by Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki (2). (Johnny Hanson / Houston Chronicle)
Astros third baseman Jimmy Paredes (38) looks at his glove. (Johnny Hanson / Houston Chronicle)
Rockies pitcher Alex White throws against the Astros. (Bob Levey / Getty)
Astros shortstop Clint Barmes is upended by Seth Smith of Colorado Rockies as Barmes attempts to turn a double play. (Bob Levey / Getty)
Astros pitcher Henry Sosa throws against the Colorado Rockies. (Bob Levey / Getty)
Rockies leftfielder Eric Young Jr. can't come up with the catch on a fly ball off the wall from Clint Barmes of the Astros. (Bob Levey / Getty)
Rockies third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff fields a ground ball off the bat of Carlos Lee. (Bob Levey / Getty)
Astros third baseman Jimmy Paredes reaches for a ground-ball single from Rockies' Troy Tulowitzki. (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)
Astros' Henry Sosa delivers a pitch in the third inning. (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)
Rockies' Alex White delivers a pitch in the second inning. (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)
Astros shortstop Clint Barmes, right, flies over Colorado Rockies' Seth Smith in an unsuccessful attempt to complete a double play. (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)
Astros' Carlos Lee connects for a bases-loaded, three-run double. (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)
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