MILWAUKEE — Most of Craig Counsell's days for the next six months will go like Friday.

His heavy work will be done before the game, where every swing in the batting cage is a chance to get more comfortable with his retooled batting stance.

He'll chat with J.J. Hardy as the two take turns fielding grounders.

Then, Counsell will head inside to the Milwaukee Brewers' clubhouse to prepare for when — and if — he's called upon to play a role in that day's game.

That's life as a backup infielder behind the Brewers' talented young quartet of first baseman Prince Fielder, second baseman Rickie Weeks, shortstop Hardy and third baseman Bill Hall.

Counsell knows that as well as anybody.

"You want the guys to do well," the 37-year-old said. "I'd love to play, to be honest with you. It's a lot more fun to play. If those guys do well, I know there's not going to be much playing time."

That's how it's been in the early part of this season for Counsell. He's appeared in three of Milwaukee's first five games, pinch hitting in the 10th inning of the Brewers' 4-3 opening day win over the Chicago Cubs, coming on in a double switch to play third in the final game of the series at Wrigley Field and starting at shortstop Saturday against the San Francisco Giants.

That's a far cry from how Counsell's season started last year, when he was part of a platoon at third base with Tony Graffanino after projected starter Corey Koskie was unable to recover from post-concussion syndrome.

That arrangement, of course, ended when the Brewers called up top prospect Ryan Braun — now the team's starting left fielder — from Class AAA Nashville on May 24.

Counsell spent the rest of the season filling in at shortstop (17 starts) and second base (22 starts), while being used as a late-inning defensive replacement for Braun at third.

Time for a change

But while Counsell was great in the field, committing only two errors in 122 games while shuffling around the diamond — "If I could play defense like him, I'd be really, really happy," Hardy said — his performance at the plate prompted an offseason makeover. Counsell hit .220, the second-worst average of his career.

"I had kind of known going into the offseason that I was going to make some changes," Counsell said.

Brewers hitting coach Jim Skaalen suggested Counsell alter his upright, narrow stance last season, but he was understandably reluctant to make a mid-season change.

But he worked on it over the winter, widening his legs and lessening the overall movement.

"I was really impressed that he did that, because it would be easy at his age, someone who's played as long as he has to say, 'Oh the heck with it. I know this other way works. I'm going to stay with it,' " Skaalen said. "It was inconsistent last year, so he's done what he's done and it's been great."

Said Counsell: "When you're not having success, you know you've got to do something (else), you know you've got to change it up if you're not having success."

The early returns look encouraging. Counsell batted .365 in 52 spring training at-bats, with six extra-base hits among his 19 hits. He's had only six plate appearances in the regular season, but has reached back in half of them.

He doubled off Cubs reliever Bob Howry to lead off Milwaukee's decisive 10th inning on opening day, and scored the winning run on Tony Gwynn Jr.'s sacrifice fly. In the third game of the series, a 6-3 loss for the Brewers, he drew a walk in the seventh inning and then lined a single to left field off Chicago closer Kerry Wood in the ninth.

"I liked how I saw the ball in the spring," Counsell said. "Right now it feels pretty good, but it's constant work, that's for sure."

Been there, done that

Counsell, who grew up in nearby Whitefish Bay while his father, John, worked in the Brewers' front office, said he doesn't consider his time spent with Milwaukee's young core of players "teaching."

"You try to help them," he said. "They've got it pretty figured out, really. They don't need much help. But if there's ever things you can help them with, you just try to help them, point them in the right direction."

But Counsell has what those younger players want.

He's one of four players on the team — starting pitcher Jeff Suppan, reliever Eric Gagne and outfielder Gabe Kapler are the others — to win a World Series title, having been a key ingredient on the Florida Marlins in 1997 (he scored the winning run in Game 7 against Cleveland) and the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001 (he was the MVP of the National League Championship Series against Atlanta).

"He's been there, he's done that," Hardy said. "He's been on a couple of World Series teams and won. He's a guy that I definitely look up to."