DENVER -- From 2012-17, Chris Davis averaged 37 home runs with an .840 OPS, becoming one of the more feared sluggers in baseball. But by the second half of the 2018 season, he looked anything but dangerous. Davis set a Major League record by going hitless in 62 consecutive plate appearances from Sept. 15 through April 12 of this year.

Finally having a batting average to his name for the '19 season on April 13, Davis began a run through May 17 during which he slashed .273/.341/.506 with five home runs. The difference was night and day. But day gave way to night again, and since May 18, the first baseman has hit just .053 over six games, striking out in 13 of his 21 plate appearances.

Davis hasn't started since Thursday against the Yankees, making one pinch-hit plate appearance and striking out against the Rockies on Friday. He was not in the starting lineup for Saturday's contest at Coors Field, and according to manager Brandon Hyde, he won't be in there Sunday, either.

"I'm day to day [on Davis] right now," Hyde said. "I'm giving him a breather right now, and we're gonna go from there. ... I just want Chris to feel good. I care about Chris. I just want to put him in positions to have success, and I want to give him breaks when I feel like he needs it. We have an awesome, awesome relationship."

Davis' up-and-down season so far comes after a 2018 campaign in which he put up the worst numbers of his career, slashing .168/.243/.296 with 16 homers in 522 plate appearances. That, coupled with his hitless streak that bled into April this year, made the question of whether he would be an Oriole much longer a legitimate one.

What happens the rest of this season could have a significant impact on Davis' future with the club, though it's hard to imagine Baltimore being able to move him or wanting to release him given the remaining $92 million on his contract through 2022. Still, with the club in the throes of a rebuild and evaluating its future direction with young talent, Davis needs to prove he can be the Davis of old.

"He had a few weeks there where he was taking good at-bats, swinging the bat well, and the last two weeks or so, he's just fallen back a little bit into indecision, possibly in between pitches, late on the heater, out in front of the offspeed, maybe pressing a little bit," Hyde said.

"I just want to give him room to relax and I want him to focus on taking good at-bats. Sometimes the best thing is to get away from it for a little while."