The manager of the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes in the California League called Scott Schebler into his office at the beginning of the season and gave him some disturbing news.

Carlos Subero, the skipper, bluntly told Schebler he did not consider him an everyday player for the Quakes and planned to put him toward the bottom of the batting order when he got into games.

Schebler was deeply offended.

"Me and the manager, from Day 1, kind of butted heads," he said in a telephone interview this week. "I really didn't agree with what he said right off the bat.

"I took the opportunity to tell him how I felt about it. I didn't tell him anything rude, but I said, 'Hey, I think I'm better than that.' I thought I was good enough to play every day on this team."

Schebler was right. In fact, he's shown Subero and everybody else that he's one of the top players in the Class A California League and perhaps ready for a promotion to Double-A ball in Chattanooga, Tenn., in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization.

Schebler, a Cedar Rapids Prairie product, has been one of the hottest hitters in the minor leagues for the past 30 days. He's hit .405 for the Quakes with 11 homers and 30 RBIs in the last 27 games, covering a 30-day period from June 12 through July 11.

Schebler hit .403 during an 18-game hitting streak from June 12 through July 2 before going 0-for-4 in a ballgame. Unperturbed, he began a new eight-game streak on July 4 and was hitting .457 during that stretch heading into Friday night's game.

Schebler is hitting .311 for the season with 17 home runs and 54 RBIs. He leads the California League in triples (10) and OPS (.990) and ranks in the top-15 in the league in eight categories. He ranks fifth in homers, seventh in runs scored (60), eighth in hitting, 12th in base hits (92), 13th in doubles (21) and 14th in RBIs.

It looks and feels great now, but Schebler was languishing with a .254 batting average on June 7. He struck out in his first two at-bats that day and he exchanged words with Subero.

"I was struggling there for a little bit and we really butted heads one day and kind of got into it," said Schebler. "He sat me down for four games. It actually was one of the best things for me."

Schebler decided to quit worrying about the manager and start focusing on himself.

"At the beginning of the season, I was trying to do everything to prove him wrong because of the way he was treating me," he said. "I was really just concentrating on him, which was totally the opposite thing I should have been doing.

"I should be concentrating on my career and what I'm doing every day on the field. I really decided to do it not to prove him wrong, but to do it because it's what I want."

Schebler batted in the No.7 or No.8 spot in the order during the first two months of the season, but the manager moved him into the No.2 spot June 13 and has kept him there most of the time since then, with a few games in the leadoff spot and a few games in the No.5 hole.

Schebler never got comfortable near the bottom of the batting order. "I'm not exactly sure to this day why I was there," he said. "I lost a little confidence at the beginning of the year, (but) I wouldn't say I was feeling sorry for myself.

"I was kind of waiting for my shot, and I kind of took advantage of it."

Schebler was selected by the Dodgers in the 26th round of the 2010 draft after his one and only year at DMACC, where he hit .446 with 20 homers and 82 RBIs and was named a junior college All-American.

He hit .285 with 13 homers and 58 RBIs at Ogden in the minor leagues in 2011, then batted .260 with six homers and 67 RBIs at Great Lakes in the Midwest League last season.

Schebler feels he's ready for a promotion to Double-A baseball, but nobody in the organization has said anything about it. "It's obviously what I hope for, because that's what I want," he said.

Schebler has proven that he's one of the top players in the California League, but he's not waiting for his manager to sidle up to him and say, "You know, Schebbie, you were right. I was wrong.'"

"No, I don't think I'll be getting any of those," said Schebler, laughing. "I don't need that. I don't need his approval.

"We're on a lot better terms now."

Schebler said his batting coach with the Quakes, Johnny Washington, has been a big help this season. They made an adjustment with Schebler's hands so he has better "separation" from his body, keeps his hands back and doesn't lunge at pitches.

Also, Schebler keeps a log of all the pitchers he faces in the California League and makes notes on what pitches they've thrown him in certain situations and pitch counts. He's been facing those pitchers for the second and third time this season and has developed into an extremely good hitter.

"The last month has been kind of a blur," he said. "You get into a zone like that and you just fly through it. I don't want to say the game is slowing down a ton, but I'd say I'm a lot more comfortable going into that box every time.

"It's definitely the most comfortable I've felt in pro ball, without a doubt."