MILWAUKEE — Ned Yost insisted it was no big deal.

The Milwaukee Brewers manager said he used a makeshift lineup with his four true reserves — Joe Dillon, Gabe Kapler, Mike Rivera and Craig Counsell — against the Houston Astros Sunday only because he wanted to rest his regulars and give the backups some at-bats.

"We've got a really nice bench, but you've got to keep them sharp," Yost said. "You've got to give them more than two or three at-bats a week. You try to pick one or two days that you can get them three or four at-bats in a ballgame."

Sunday, Yost went above and beyond. He got all of them five at-bats. And with the four reserves sparking the offense by consistently reaching base, the suddenly surging Brewers hung a 10-1 loss on the Astros at Miller Park.

"It's great," outfielder Ryan Braun said. "We have so many role players that can get in there and contribute on a day-in, day-out basis."

They haven't had much of a chance because Yost has used a set lineup for the most part. But Sunday's shake-up, even if it was for only a day, seemed to have an agenda attached to it. While Yost called it his give-the-regulars-a-rest lineup, in reality it looked more like his put-the-ball-in-play lineup.

You see, even as the Brewers won five of six games before Sunday, their strikeouts reached epidemic proportions and they struggled to score runs. The biggest thing holding back the offense was a lack of men on base, especially in the top two spots in the order. Leadoff man Rickie Weeks and No. 2 hitter Mike Cameron were making only rare appearances on the bases, leaving Braun and Prince Fielder with few RBI opportunities.

When Weeks and Cameron — in addition to J.J. Hardy and Jason Kendall — spent Sunday on the bench, it altered the nature of the lineup. For a day anyway, there were more get-on-base types than free-swingers at the plate.

It showed. Dillon, Kapler, Rivera and Counsell had seven hits in 15 at-bats and reached base 12 times in 20 plate appearances. The result was Milwaukee's most prolific scoring day since a 10-7 victory over the Chicago Cubs on April 29.

"It's awesome," said Braun, who hit a semi-rare home run with a teammate on base. "It's always nice to have guys on base when you're up. Everybody throughout the lineup has been doing a much better job of getting on base."

Everybody except Weeks and Cameron, that is. In his past seven games, Weeks is 5-for-28 with nine strikeouts. Cameron was scuffling worse than Weeks, going 2-for-20 with 13 strikeouts in his past five games.

Since Braun and Fielder appeared to be heating up and the Brewers weren't taking full advantage of it, it was interesting that Yost put Dillon and Kapler together in the first two spots, where Weeks' .328 on-base percentage and Cameron's .280 OBP simply aren't cutting it. Yost hinted at a problem there during his pregame session with reporters.

"(Dillon) puts the ball in play," Yost said. "He's an on-base guy. He'll take a walk. Kap's been swinging the bat well. They're both guys that could be table-setters for Braunie, who's hot, and Prince, who's hot."

Yost downplayed the importance of strikeouts just last week, but Sunday's game showed the importance of having hitters at the top of the order who get on base consistently.

That doesn't mean Yost is starting the wrong players. Weeks and Cameron have power and speed and Cameron is a magnificent defensive center fielder.

It does mean, however, that Yost shouldn't be afraid to shake up his lineup more often or be married to a certain batting order when things aren't going well.

Weeks will almost certainly remain in the leadoff spot. The only other player who could hit there is Corey Hart and he's probably too valuable hitting behind Fielder.

It has become apparent, however, that Cameron strikes out too much to hit second and should be dropped in the order. A No. 2 hitter must be able to handle the bat and Hardy would be a better fit than Cameron. Plus, he's thrived there in the past.

And if nothing else, maybe Sunday's game showed Yost that he shouldn't be afraid to empty the bench a little more often.