Hart on a tear as Milwaukee's leadoff man

After bouncing around the Milwaukee Brewers batting order upon his return from an oblique strain earlier this season, right fielder Corey Hart seemed to find a home in the five spot vacated by a struggling Casey McGehee. The problem, though, was Hart wasn't comfortable hitting fifth. With much of the lineup scuffling offensively, Hart told Brewers manager Ron Roenicke he'd be willing to bat leadoff, something he hadn't done since July 2009. Roenicke decided to shake things up and made the move, bumping Rickie Weeks to fifth. "The five-hole has been a tough spot for us all year," Hart said at the time. "Guys hit in other spots and then get there, and for some reason it doesn't work out." Now, after taking a little time to settle in at the top of the batting order, Corey Hart is thriving as the new leadoff man on a surging offense. The Brewers offense entered play Friday having totaled at least 10 hits in six straight games, a stretch in which they batted .341 and averaged 6.3 runs per game. On a hot streak of late, Hart has been a big part of the offensive outburst. While the Brewers went 8-1 on their homestand that ended Wednesday, Hart batted .385 (15-for-39) with seven RBI and two home runs. He raised his batting average from .262 to .278. For his recent success in the new role, Hart credited Brewers hitting coach Dale Sveum. "It's just Dale as always," Hart said in an interview Friday with FOXSports Wisconsin's Craig Coshun. "Dale always finds a way to tune me up or switch me around a little bit to make me fit into each spot." This season, Hart has batted everywhere but eighth and fourth, a spot locked down by Prince Fielder. Though he's done a lot of moving around, Hart said the approach he and Sveum took to making the necessary adjustments to his new spot didn't change. "The leadoff spot is no different," Hart said. "(Sveum) wanted me to mess around a little bit and it took a few, three or four games, for me to get comfortable up there and since then it's pretty good." The one thing Hart has admitted is a bit different about the leadoff spot is the need to slow things down at times and focuse more on patience at the plate. Sometimes, Hart said early in his new role, that means being more passive than aggressive. In 18 games as the Brewers leadoff hitter, Hart is hitting .315 with 11 RBI and four home runs. Most importantly, he's comfortable hitting there. With Weeks out of the lineup for an extended stretch as he rehabs a severely sprained ankle, the Brewers are hoping Hart can continue his hot hitting to help pick up the slack. "Hopefully it continues because obviously were playing well," Hart said. "It's nice to get on base for the guys behind me to kind of lead the way and that's one of the reasons it's working."