Slugging Davis stays hot, looks primed for more

BALTIMORE -- When he's hot, Chris Davis is capable of helping carry the Orioles' offense through stretches of the schedule. And Davis could be ready to go on one of his tears.

"He's kind of been on one," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said of Davis, who homered twice in Tuesday's 8-6 loss to the Rangers. "If you look at the pace he is on, getting close to that halfway point where you just kind of multiply everything times two and you get an idea of where they are, at the end of the year, Chris is going to have his moments.

"He can create a lot of damage in a hurry and really be a force for us. He already has this year. That's why when he goes through some challenging times, you know there is good things potentially to happen around every corner."

The slugger drove in four runs and was a bright spot in the loss, as Davis now has a season-high 10-game hitting streak, his longest since a career-high 11 games Sept. 22-Oct. 2, 2012.

"I feel like I've been pretty close all season. I think early on, I had stretches where I was swinging the bat well, and then after the first month, I had stretches where I was swinging at balls out of the strike zone," said Davis, who hit both homers off Rangers starter, and former teammate, Colby Lewis. "That's probably the biggest thing is being aggressive in the strike zone. Obviously playing for Texas and playing against them, I have a pretty good idea what they're going to do. Just try to go out there and hit my pitch and do what I can."

Davis is hitting .351 over his 10-game hit streak (13-for-37) with two doubles, four home runs, eight runs scored and 10 RBIs. He has also hit safely in 16 of his last 20 games, and joined leadoff man Manny Machado in going deep for the O's on Tuesday.

"[The offense is] big for us, especially the top of the lineup, Manny getting on base, and when C.D. gets hot, there aren't many guys who can hit a ball further and more consistently than him," catcher Matt Wieters said.