SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Barely one-third of the Giants' exhibition season has elapsed, but it's already evident who their best clutch hitter has been.

Ryan Rohlinger belted his third ninth-inning home run in four games Monday, a three-run drive that gave the Giants an 8-6 exhibition victory over the Milwaukee Brewers.

With the Giants trailing, 6-5, Matt Downs and Brian Bocock singled off Milwaukee right-hander Eduardo Morlan. Up came Rohlinger, who deposited Morlan's 2-1 pitch over the left-field barrier.

Last Friday at Tempe, Ariz., Rohlinger gave the Giants a short-lived 4-3 lead with a two-run homer. On Saturday, his three-run homer turned what would have been a lopsided loss to Colorado into a 9-7 defeat.

Rohlinger owns a .444 spring average (4-for-9) and leads the team in homers (three) and RBIs (eight).

Rohlinger, 25, wasn't expected to be a serious contender for the third-base job, which has been essentially handed to Pablo Sandoval. But, manager Bruce Bochy acknowledged, "he's done what he needs to do to get back in the picture."

Said Rohlinger, "I came in [to camp] thinking I had nothing to lose. Just play hard and whatever happens happens. I'm not going to get too upset if I don't get the job. I'm going to keep working throughout the year and hopefully get back up."

Rohlinger hit 18 home runs in 2007 at low-Class A Augusta, but his power dipped somewhat last year as he batted a combined .289 with 13 homers and 65 RBIs for high-Class A San Jose and Double-A Connecticut. Promoted to the Giants on Aug. 13, Rohlinger hit .094 in 21 games.

He downplayed his Cactus League prowess.

"It's early, so I'm fresh," Rohlinger said. "My bat's lighter than it will be at the end of the year. I'm just trying to see the ball and get good swings."

Rohlinger's homer hiked the Giants' total to a Major League-high 23. Earlier in the game, Juan Uribe and John Bowker hit back-to-back homers. But Bochy's not fooling himself into thinking that the Giants suddenly have become one of the National League's premier slugging teams.

"We're in Arizona. The ball has been carrying well," he said. "At the same time, you like the way some of these kids are swinging."