"Though slumping second baseman Kelly Johnson was frustrated to find himself out of the Diamondbacks' lineup in the opening game of a big series, he had no trouble keeping the big picture in mind.

"It's been a struggle," Johnson said of his season. "But it's been a lot of fun being on this team, one of the most fun teams I've ever been on playing baseball. That's even without having personal success."

Johnson, who struck out as a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning Tuesday, is 4 for 38 (.105) through 10 games in August, and manager Kirk Gibson left him on the bench for the second game in a row, using Sean Burroughs at third base while shifting Ryan Roberts to second.

"The way I've been feeling, it doesn't take a whole lot (for pitchers to get him out)," he said. "They've definitely made some adjustments. Everybody's getting more cutters in the league; that's a tough pitch, bearing in on you. But I'm missing pitches when I do get them."

Said Gibson: "He's not that far off. . . . Maybe try to simplify things a little bit. I was just down there in the cage. He's working. We'll give him a little break here, and then we'll get him back in there. Hopefully it'll have a good effect on him."

Johnson didn't sound down in the dumps, saying he has learned not to be so hard on himself when he struggles. He also said the atmosphere surrounding the team has been infectious and that the energy of his younger teammates reminds him of his early days with the Atlanta Braves.

"It's been a blast," he said. "You've got a little bit of everything on this team. It's kind of just refreshing, being around that kind of success.""