Brewers Wong finds out who he 'really wanted to be' in Milwaukee

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MILWAUKEE - To watch Kolten Wong before a Brewers game is to see someone who is serious about his job.

"I think that's just how I was raised," said Wong. "You know, to never take a day off. I tie my confidence to my preparation so if I'm not prepared, I'm not going to be confident. So I try to make sure I dot all the i's and make sure that everything is clear so that when I step into the game, I know I did all my practice, I know I did all my work, and now it's time to go play."

At 31 years old, Wong has been to the World Series, has signed sizable contracts, has won multiple Gold Glove fielding awards, and he still gets a charge out of impacting a game.

"It's just knowing who you are as a player," Wong said. "You always want to have that impact offensively, but for me, I know that me being the player that I am, I have to play every part of the game. Base-running, defense, trying to help the younger guys get their next at-bat going. It's just about being a leader and knowing that the guys before me taught me how to do this, and now I'm trying to do the same."

In only a season plus, Wong is making his mark for a team that was once his division rival.

"Just a fresh start," said Wong. "Obviously, in St. Louis, I had seven years there of growing and figuring out who I was as a player. When I got to Milwaukee, I got to find who I really wanted to be. I came in with no expectations of being a leader or anything, I just wanted to help this team win and I kind of found myself in that category with Yeli, and lo Cain, and all the top guys. I'm just trying to fill that void of being a veteran but also carry my weight on this team."

Wong hit a pair of home runs Sunday afternoon in Milwaukee's loss to San Diego.

He and the rest of his teammates have Monday off after playing 18 games in 17 days.