A SNAPSHOT OF THE ROCKIES HEADING INTO THE SECOND HALF:

Slumping cargo:

Outfielder Carlos Gonzalez just can’t seem to get his bat to heat up. He’s hitting .221 with six homers. His teammates aren’t worried about the lifetime .291 hitter. “He can be the best player on the planet when he gets hot,” said Blackmon, who leads the majors in hits (117) and triples (10). “He usually gets hot at some point. We haven’t seen it yet. If he gets hot, he can really carry a team.” Shortstop Trevor Story also has yet to find his offensive rhythm. He’s batting .224 with 100 strikeouts and 11 homers.

YOUNG ARMS:

Colorado is the first team to have four rookies — Freeland, Jeff Hoffman, German Marquez and Antonio Senzatela — all win at least five games before the All-Star break, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The quartet has started 56 of 91 games, going 29-15 with a 4.21 ERA. The recent return of Gray relieves some of the pressure. The ace of the staff, Gray missed two months with a stress fracture in his left foot. He’s 2-0 since coming off the DL on June 30.

DEFENSE WINS:

The Rockies boast one of the top-fielding teams in baseball. They’re 41-20 when they don’t commit an error and 11-19 when they have at least one.

DESMOND’S STRUGGLES:

Sidelined by a strained right calf, infielder/outfielder Ian Desmond should return soon after the break. It’s been a trying season for Desmond, who began the year on the DL with a broken left hand. Desmond signed a fiveyear, $70 million deal in the offseason. He’s hitting .283 with five homers — just one at Coors Field.

FAVORABLE SCHEDULE:

Of their 71 remaining games, 37 are at Coors Field, where they’re 26-18 this season. They don’t face Arizona — second place in the NL West — or the Dodgers again until September. “Our sights, I don’t think it’s just on the wild card. It’s still the division,” LeMahieu said. “I think we have a good chance of making things interesting — a very good chance of making things interesting late into the second half.”