At least the Milwaukee Brewers have yet to resort to some deviant form of clubhouse misogyny, a la the Chicago White Sox, in an effort to break a month-long slump that is pushing the supposed contender closer to pretender in the National League Central standings.

In fact, as we approach the quarter pole of the season, it's beginning to look like the bad old days when the Brewers could figure on that September chase with the Cincinnati Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates to stay out of the cellar instead of the good new days when a playoff push against the Chicago Cubs or St. Louis Cardinals is supposed to be the rule for the last month of the season.

Now, minus some voodoo slump-buster approach, the Brewers need to turn their misfortunes into fortunes or risk squandering whatever goodwill remains among the populace from last season's near division title and the lofty expectations that existed at the start of the season.

It's certainly not too late to turn this season around. One good stretch is all it will take to chase down the Cubs, who have some serious problems of their own, and the Cardinals, who, it would seem, eventually will run out of their good fortune at some point in the season.

Still, there is reason to be concerned. As much as you want to point at the Brewers' slumbering bats for the recent downfall, the causes cross the other two lines — pitching and defense — as well. This is an all-around malaise, not just a case of failing to pick up some key hits at a critical juncture of a game.

There are no given cures available. If that were the case, the Brewers most certainly would have purchased the prescription already. But there are suggestions to be made for a team that was 11-16 heading into Thursday night's game, the 13th-worst record in the National League since April 7, when the Brewers were enjoying a 5-1 start.

On the mound

Sure, the long-range fortunes of the Brewers depend on a healthy Ben Sheets, who despite one missed start certainly has not disappointed this season. But even a healthy Sheets can make up for the inadequacies of a quartet that no longer includes their second-best starter, Yovani Gallardo.

Some of the pitching numbers are downright terrifying, the first being that the foursome of Jeff Suppan, Carlos Villanueva, Dave Bush and Manny Parra have not picked up a victory since April 4. While Sheets is 4-0 with an ERA average of 2.29, the others are a combined 3-11 with a 5.34 ERA.

The numbers don't get much better after that. Brewers starters, Sheets and Gallardo included, are averaging 5.73 innings per start, a respectable figure that is better than the NL average of 5.59.

But those certainly are rough innings as Parra and Suppan each allow opponents to hit over .300, with Parra at a whopping .330, and Villanueva and Bush each pushing the .300 mark. Parra is averaging two baserunners per inning. Bush and Suppan are at the 1.55 mark per inning. Villanueva's at 1.3.

As we have learned only too well in the past, those sort of numbers put undue pressure on a bullpen. At this rate, the pen's overall slide will begin sometime in June.

Barring a major trade, this is the starting unit that will be backing Sheets for most of the season. It's a shame, too, considering that only a few months ago, everyone was lauding general manager Doug Melvin for building the depth of the rotation. But now, with Gallardo (knee) and Chris Capuano (elbow) likely out for the season, and Claudio Vargas toiling in the New York Mets' farm system, depth is non-existent.

Is Jeff Weaver an answer? The free agent acquisition has pitched twice at Class AAA Nashville, and his last game was a gem — seven innings, four hits, one run. But in 11 major league seasons, Weaver is 21 games below .500 with a 4.72 ERA. If anything, he is little more than some temporary help.

At the plate

The daily line is that the Brewers are going to hit, their lineup is too good. But where does the guarantee come from? A track record of all of one season?

In the first six games, the Brewers hit .303 and averaged 6.6 runs per game, some pretty hefty numbers. In the next 27 games, the Brewers hit .224 and averaged 3.85 runs per game. They were 5-1 while going good; 11-16 after.

Even that 3.85 runs per game average is jaded. In three of the victories, the Brewers combined for 28 runs. In the other 24 games, they averaged 3.16 runs.

While manager Ned Yost has little flexibility when it comes to his starting rotation, he does have some flexibility with his lineup. The irony in that is that one of the chief criticisms with Yost last season is that he never settled on a regular lineup. Now he has, to little avail.

Much of the lineup focus is on leadoff hitter Rickie Weeks, who despite hitting the ball hard on a somewhat regular basis, is still sniffing the .200 line. Now the Brewers say they want him in that spot because he scores runs, and it's hard to deny that thinking. But why wouldn't Corey Hart, a better hitter and as good or even better baserunner than Weeks, score runs from the leadoff spot, a position he filled well last year when Weeks was out?

The one problem with moving Hart out of the fifth spot is it takes some protection away from cleanup hitter Prince Fielder, who has yet to approach his form of the last two seasons. Nor is Ryan Braun looking like the phenom who won the Rookie of the Year award last year. The two of them together in the third and fourth spots are well below the league average for those two key spots.

Moving Hart just may mean moving strikeout-prone Bill Hall back to the fifth spot.

Or is the solution to move shortstop J.J. Hardy into the fifth spot and move Weeks to seventh, in front of the pitcher in most of Yost's lineups? Hardy certainly hasn't prospered in the seventh spot and this sort of move doesn't mean it will work for Weeks, either. But at this point, with the way things are going, does it matter?

If it's one small consolation, the Brewers do lead the league in hitting in one spot in their lineup — ninth, where catcher Jason Kendall has helped make Yost's experiment with hitting the pitcher eighth a success. But at this point, that is nothing but a sideshow.

In the field

All the numbers say the Brewers are better defensively. But too often, numbers lie.

Despite all their hard work — and they do work hard — Weeks and Fielder form the weakest right side of an infield in the league. Braun plays so deep in left that the only time he clearly comes into view is when he's chasing that single that falls in front of him.

With the exception of center fielder Mike Cameron and Hart in right, the rest of the defenders — Kendall behind the plate, Hardy at short and Hall at third — are slightly above average.

The decision-makers

If anyone knows about the best-laid plans, it's Melvin. He has stocked the roster with some representable position players but has yet to complement that with quality in-house pitching. It shows, especially now.

But don't think that Melvin doesn't have a vision for the near future. He is a creative thinker with some gambler tendencies, and while he won't wager the future for the present, he will make a deal if it means something now. Time — and the Brewers performance over the next few weeks — is the only hindrance to such a plan.

Yost has the harder job. He is the target of just about every expert who wants to pin some blame on the Brewers' slide. That is part of the agreement when you sign on as a manager.

However, as anyone who has coached or managed knows, the only aspect of the job open to legitimate criticism is the strategy one decides on. Yost's thinking usually is solid. It's the execution of that strategy that often stinks.