MILWAUKEE -- Brewers shortstop J.J. Hardy has been out of action for the last four games, and will be for at least one more.

Manager Ned Yost left him out of the starting lineup for Tuesday's series opener against the Blue Jays, opting to test Hardy's left shoulder with batting practice and work in the infield instead.

"I'm going to test him today and find out [how he's feeling]," Yost said. "He hasn't done anything for four days. He'll come out, test it, and if he feels fine then he'll play tomorrow."

Hardy has been out of action for the last five days, but he did go through his normal pregame routine on Tuesday and felt no pain in the surgically repaired shoulder.

"I didn't know how it would feel today, it being the first day back and all, but it felt a lot better than I thought it would," Hardy said.

"Considering the fact I hadn't swung the bat in five days, it felt pretty good."

After meeting with the team physician, Hardy was told he had a left rotator cuff strain and there is no damage to his labrum. Hardy had surgery in 2004 to repair a torn left labrum, so this news was good.

"I think we are taking a little more time so that [the soreness and weakness in the shoulder] will be gone and then I won't have to deal with it anymore," Hardy said.

The team has taken extra care to give Hardy time to heal because they'd like to avoid further flare-ups of the injury later on this season.

"They don't want it to be two steps forward and one step back," Hardy said. "So we are trying to take as much time as possible so that [the problems] are completely gone for the rest of the season."

Hardy hasn't participated in "baseball-related activities" over the last five days, but has been doing a lot of rehab work to return strength to the shoulder. The soreness in the joint has also subsided over the last week, according to Hardy.

"Yesterday was one of the first days all year that I could go through whatever I had to do in a day and not feel my shoulder," Hardy said Tuesday. "Before, I'd just be taking my socks off or my shoes or whatever and then I'd feel it, but now I feel really good."

The other half of the Brewers' injured middle infield -- second baseman Rickie Weeks -- also made a bit of progress on Tuesday. Weeks took ground balls during batting practice for the first time since he was placed on the disabled on June 7.

"Yeah, he's doing a little better," Yost said. "He's doing a lot of rehab stuff, getting the soreness and irritation out of there."

Weeks, who has been out with a sprained left knee, moved carefully during his time on the field, but said the session went well. Yost is optimistic about his second baseman's return.

"I don't think he'll be out a long time past the 15 days. Maybe a couple of days but I don't expect it to be much longer than that," Yost said.