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Rockies put up six runs in the first inning

DENVER -- Carlos Gonzalez's wrist is doing just fine.

The Rockies outfielder slugged his seventh home run since coming off the disabled list two weeks ago, part of the team's early onslaught in a 9-5 win over the Astros on Monday in front of 27,166 at Coors Field.

Gonzalez -- who missed 14 games with right wrist inflammation -- also doubled in a pair during a six-run first inning against Houston starter Brett Meyers. Gonzalez's homer, a second-deck shot that stayed just inside the right-field foul pole, came in the second, his 22nd of the season. He is hitting .370 (10-for-27) with four homers and 14 RBIs during the Rockies' current homestand, during which Colorado has gone 5-2.

With the D-backs losing to the Nationals, 4-1, on Monday, the Rockies are now 8 1/2 games back in the National League West. It's the closest Colorado has been since trailing by the same margin on July 16.

"We still have a lot of chances," said Gonzalez, who has homered six times with 19 RBIs during his current 10-game hitting streak. "That's Rockies baseball. Whenever we get to the second half, we push the gas. We push the peddle and try to play better and try to make it to the playoffs."

Wielding a comfortable lead throughout, Rockies starter Jhoulys Chacin became the first Colorado pitcher to 10 wins. The right-hander yielded 11 hits to an aggressive Astros lineup over seven innings, but he walked just one. He managed to wiggle out of jams all night, the only damage against him coming on Brian Bogusevic's solo homer in the fourth.

"He gave up hits, yeah," said Houston left fielder J.D. Martinez, who collected two of his three hits off Chacin. "But when there were guys on base, he locked down, which is something good for him, bad for us."

Rockies manager Jim Tracy said Chacin's latest outing illustrated that, because of his strong secondary arsenal, the right-hander can get away with scattering hits if he keeps the walks down.

"He stayed in the strike zone throughout the course of the seven innings he was out there," Tracy said. "The bullet point I'd like to make is, he surrendered 11 hits, but because of walking only one guy and getting a few outs when he needed them with some traffic out there, he turns it into a very good outing."

Chacin helped his cause in the Rockies' big first inning with a two-run double. He slammed his bat in frustration after lifting a fly ball toward center field, but he quickly picked up his pace when he realized the Houston outfield was playing shallow. Astros center fielder Jordan Schafer made a diving attempt at the ball, but came up empty.

"Everybody was yelling, 'Run, run, run,'" Chacin said with a laugh.

Chacin grew stronger as his outing waged on. He faced the minimum over his final two innings, thanks to one of the three double plays turned by the Rockies. He struck out two and walked one.

"The defense was really good," Chacin said. "That really helped me a lot, because there were a lot of runners on base."

Gonzalez and Chacin had plenty of help. Ty Wigginton collected two hits, and Todd Helton and Mark Ellis added RBI singles in the first. Chris Nelson added a pinch-hit, two-run base knock in the eighth.

Myers, who had won seven consecutive starts over the Rockies, held Colorado in check after Gonzalez's home run. He was charged with seven runs on nine hits over five innings. But the early assault on the the left-hander was more than enough for the Rockies, even after the Astros rallied for four runs in the ninth.

The Rockies' three-game winning streak has demonstrated the offense's capability to when both its stars, Gonzalez and Troy Tulowitzki -- who is hitting .378 (28-for-74) with five home runs and 13 RBIs in August -- are clicking at the same time. It's a trend the Rockies will need to continue for any miraculous run at the division crown to occur.

"You see the results," Gonzalez said. "When we contribute and get runs to the plate, it gives the team a chance to pitch well and just play good enough to get the wins."

Nick Kosmider is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.