THREE UP ...

Star studded scorecard: San Diego third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff was a busy man, assisting on seven of the first 13 outs for the Padres. The first two came against the Brewers' first two hitters and earned stars on the scorecard for their degree of difficulty. They proved important, too, when Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder each followed with singles.

Time to remember: One of the September callups for the Padres was Randy Ready, the former Brewers' infielder who now is the manager of the Padres' Class AAA Portland team. Ready, who played for the Brewers from 1983 to '86, was recently named the Pacific Coast League's ''Best Manager Prospect'' by Baseball America. The Brewers recalled coach Garth Iorg, the organization's roving infield instructor in the minor leagues.

Nice return: Padres starter Shawn Estes, who missed most of the last two seasons because of elbow surgery and saw his comeback derailed this year by a broken left thumb, was more than solid in his first major league outing since May 28. He scattered seven hits and allowed one run.

... THREE DOWN

RIP for RISP: The Brewers' inability to hit with runners in scoring position reared its ugly head again. After going 7-for-37 (.189) in three games against the Mets, the Brewers went hitless in their first six at-bats in the situation Thursday.

Loss after loss: The Brewers' losing streak is at four. The Brewers have lost six straight once this season and five straight twice.

And what hurts most: Let's say the Brewers had split these first four games in September. That would have put them three games behind the Cubs in the division race and six games ahead of Philadelphia in the wild card race. Instead, they trail the Cubs by five games and lead the Phillies by four.