BOSTON — Career utility infielders don't suddenly become starting shortstops for the best team in the league without something big changing. There's always a drastic reinvention, or a new workout regimen, or life-altering advice from a Hall-of-Famer.

Or, could something as simple as tapping his toe be at the root the success Nick Green has had this season?

Instead of raising his leg and stepping as he swings like most other batters, Green took some advice from some famous friends and adjusted his swing this winter. Now, he stays far back and fully cocked, and then taps his left toe on the ground just before he strides and swings. It's a minor adjustment, but it's had major results –– helping to make an inconsistent hitter into a reliable, dependable lineup presence.

"My whole consistency battle with hitting has been how to load. And this seems to keep my mind off how to load," Green said.

Tapping that toe, combined with his improvement in the field –– Green is fond of saying he's "feeling better every day [defensively]" –– has stabilized the Sox' volatile shortstop situation, and made a deal for a stopgap player unnecessary. Green is proving to be a more-than-adequate fill-in until Jed Lowrie returns from wrist surgery next month, and should compete for playing time even when Lowrie comes back.

His consistency at the plate has helped win Green and his $550,000 minimum salary the starting job out of what was a platoon with $36 million man Julio Lugo. It's also helped make the affable Green into one of the best stories in Red Sox baseball this season.

"This is a guy who's been through the ups and downs of the game, from Triple-A to the big leagues, and in Triple-A for a long period of time. Now he's gotten another opportunity and he's making the most of it," said the Atlanta Braves' Chipper Jones, who helped teach Green the toe-tap.

Green was drafted by the Braves in 1998, and he made his major league debut with the organization in 2004. Coming off a rough 2008, Green worked out with several Braves players in the offseason, going extra hard during sessions with Jones, Brian McCann, Jeff Francoeur, and Mark DeRosa. Jones, McCann and DeRosa tapped their toes. Green noticed how it seemed to help them keep their weight back, and stay balanced as they exploded into the ball.

"Just think of it as throwing a punch," Jones explained. "You get [angry] at some guy, you're not going to just stand shoulder-to-shoulder and throw a punch. You're going to draw everything back, and try to get as much into it as you can. Same thing with a baseball.

"When I was young, I used to get out on my front foot, I used to bail a little bit. And my dad said, take the toe tap to overexaggerate and get everything on your back side. Get your foot down, and then explode into the baseball. It's worked for me," Jones said.

Green decided to give it a shot.

"I was talking to DeRosa about it one day, and he said hey, you should try it. And I was asking questions about it, and watching the guys do it every day. Then I tried it, and I said hey, this feels pretty good," Green said.

Green doesn't go straight back and forward like Jones, or tap and then crunch up like McCann –– he has more of a step-and-go motion. Just like Jones' example of punching a man, it helps the 6-foot, 180-pound Green use his weight to its greatest effect, and makes it more of a reflex action, rather than a conscious process.

"I don't do the exact same thing they do. I'm used to stepping one time. It helps me load without thinking about how to load," Green said, emphasizing the mental elements of the quick motion.

"If you think about it, everything slows down –– your reaction time, your fast-twitch muscles, all that stuff slows down when you put thought into it. So if I can not think about it, that should be a plus," he said.

Jones knew Green would be a much-improved hitter this year, but what has happened has blown him away.

"We take pride in our workouts during the offseason, and we brought him in because he was a former teammate, and he came in, he worked just as hard as any of us this offseason. I felt like if he got the chance to play every day that he would produce. And lo and behold –– I mean, I never dreamed he would be playing shortstop for the Boston Red Sox here in the middle of June, but here he is. He got an opportunity, because of somebody being hurt, and somebody struggling, or whatever, and he made the most of it," Jones said.

The last time he had significant playing time in the majors, Green hit .185 in 118 at bats between Tampa Bay and New York in 2006. He felt confident in 2007, but in 2008, he regressed.

"I was kind of lost in the offseason because I got so messed up last year that it was tough for me to figure out how I really wanted to hit," Green said.

Green signed with Boston with the expectation that he would go to Pawtucket, providing depth at second base, his natural position. But he came to spring training in great shape and using his new toe-tap to pound the ball. Lugo succumbed to a knee injury, opening up a spot to back up Jed Lowrie on the major league roster. Then Lowrie went down with wrist surgery, and the starting shortstop's job fell to Green.

He made the most of the opportunity, despite his lack of familiarity with the shortstop's position. Green entered Saturday night hitting .285 with 3 home runs and 23 RBI in 151 at-bats. In the field, Green immediately displayed good range, getting to balls that Lugo was not reaching.

"He's got a lot of range and obviously a great arm, too, so when he gets to it, it's going to be an out," said double-play partner Dustin Pedroia.

But he made costly mistakes as well, including several poor throws in crucial late-game situations. He had nine errors in the first two months. Over the last few weeks, however, he has improved markedly –– making several highlight-reel plays at shortstop, and appearing increasingly steady.

Manager Terry Francona has noted the improvement.

"He's playing with a lot of confidence, which he should be, because he's playing very well," Francona said.

Lowrie could return before the All-Star break, and Green has done his best not to think about what happens then. It's not clear whether it would be an open competition, a platoon situation, or something else, considering that Lugo and his $9 million annual salary are still in the mix. Green has tried to focus on today only, working with former pitcher and Sox development coach Bob Tewksbury to stay clear-minded.

"It's just something I can't control, man. Obviously it creeps into the back of your head. You never know what's going to happen. I know better than to let those things affect me –– but it still has ways to affect you," Green said.

The season is not yet half over, but no matter what happens from here on, Green has already made his mark in Boston, tapping all the way.

dbarbari@projo.com