Johnson, who struck out 13 in beating the Astros in his last
start Thursday, held Houston hitless until Jeff Bagwell's 22nd home
run in the fourth.
Johnson didn't allow another hit until Bagwell singled, Richard
Hidalgo doubled and Moises Alou hit a three-run homer in the sixth.
"Randy wasn't quite where he usually is, he's spoiled us,"
Arizona manager Buck Showalter said. "But he did good enough. He
threw good pitches when he had to. But this (Astros) is a good
right-handed hitting lineup."
It was the first time this season Johnson allowed a homer with
runners on base after yielding 12 solo home runs. His six innings
matched his shortest outing of the season.
"Fortunately, the guys went out and hit the ball well,"
Johnson said. "It's a luxury to get a seven-run lead early. You
can afford to make an error. You don't want to but if you do, you
know you have a chance."
Lima, a 21-game winner last season, hasn't won since his first
start of the season on April 5.
Along with the big hits by Conti and Miller in the third, Luis
Gonzalez hit an RBI single and Lima issued a bases-loaded walk.
"I know that Lima gave up seven runs faster than I could get
anyone warmed up," manager Larry Dierker said.
"I don't think (reliever Joe) Slusarski had thrown five or six
pitches and they all of a sudden had seven runs. I couldn't get him
in there fast enough. This has happened to Lima before. It looks
like he's going to have a pretty good game but when it goes, it's
gone."
It was the fourth time this season Houston pitchers allowed
seven runs in one inning. The last came June 24 against the Giants.
Lima also seemed to be frustrated with Alou for playing too deep
in left field.
"Ten years from now, I'm going to remember this game," Lima
said. "It's going to teach me a lesson because I lost my
composure. I found out I cannot fight with myself. I make a mistake
or give up a hit and I get mad at myself and lose my
concentration."
The Astros couldn't take advantage of Johnson's struggle.
"It was a shame," Dierker said. "I didn't think Randy had his
best stuff tonight. You could tell that he was mad at himself. I
thought we could get some runs off him. We did get some but it
wasn't enough."
Game notes
Houston has three victories in its last 14 games. Scott
Elarton was the winning pitcher in all three. ... Bagwell is the
only Astros opening day starter who hasn't been on the disabled
list this season. ... The Diamondbacks have homered in nine of
their last 10 games.