Davis rides red-hot August into cleanup spot

MILWAUKEE -- Has any Brewers player raised his stock more this season than Khris Davis? He parlayed a power-packed Spring Training into a spot on the Opening Day roster, and a red-hot August elevated him to a prime spot in Sunday's starting lineup.

With third baseman Aramis Ramirez resting his balky knee, Davis batted cleanup in manager Ron Roenicke's lineup for the first time in his career.

"It doesn't change anything I do," Davis said. "I'm just going to go out and get in my own world out there, and maybe I can bang one in, or two."

He entered the afternoon batting .296 with eight home runs and 19 RBIs. Since Davis returned in late July to replace the suspended Ryan Braun, he was hitting .321, will all of his homers and RBIs coming in that stretch.

"It's a confidence thing," he said after seeing Sunday's lineup posted in the clubhouse. "Roenicke is making out the lineups, and if he's throwing me in the four-hole, that tells me he believes in me. I'm going to believe in myself, but to see he believes in me, too, it's like, cool."

Roenicke conceded that it was not ideal to bat a rookie in that spot, saying his hand has been forced by injuries and the Braun suspension.

"The options, they're just not there," Roenicke said. "If I had everybody here, Davis would not be hitting fourth right now."

Of his productive August, Davis said, "I'm just really thankful. I've worked so hard my whole life to get to this point, and for me to show I can have success consistently, it makes me even hungrier. It makes me want to work harder."