MILWAUKEE -- The Brewers entering play Thursday with the best team batting average in the National League is not entirely surprising. Jason Kendall leading the way, while leading the Majors with a .522 average, well, that is a bit surprising.

Also surprising is the fact that Kendall's manager doesn't give a darn.

"I don't care one iota about his offensive performance," Brewers manager Ned Yost said. "Whatever he gives us offensively is gravy. Whan I care about most, and what I love about Jason Kendall, is his passion to work those pitchers and to be defensive-minded."

So far, Kendall, hitting in the No. 9 hole as part of Yost's well-publicized and overly-dissected decision to bat the pitcher eighth when Kendall is in the lineup, has been surprisingly strong offensively. He had hit safely in six straight games entering Tuesday's start against the Reds and was 8-for-13 in the first five games of the homestand.

Good luck trying to get him to discuss his hot start. Asked about it earlier this week, Kendall offered the same stock line he said in Spring Training.

"See the ball, hit the ball, hope it falls in," he said.

Did offseason LASIK surgery help him accomplish the first third of that equation?

"You have to see the ball," was all Kendall would offer.

Even though the Brewers led the league in hitting, Kendall was the only Brewers starter batting at least .290 entering Thursday's game against the Reds. Prince Fielder, Corey Hart and J.J. Hardy, 20-plus home run hitters last season, had yet to homer. Center fielder Gabe Gross was hitting just .091, though he doubled in the first inning on Thursday, and shortstop Hardy was hitting .185, before delivering an RBI single in the second.

"I wouldn't say we have anybody on our club right now that's hot offensively, yet we're still leading the league in hitting," Yost said. "You can tell when our club gets hot because our walks will start to rise."