With Rickie Weeks out for the season, Ken Macha has been looking for ways to restore the punch provided by the much-improved second baseman.

The Brewers manager is hoping that added power comes from within his current lineup; specifically, from his right fielder.

After getting off to a good start that erased some of the memories of last Septembers miserable finish, Corey Hart had fallen into a prolonged slump. After a 2-for-4 showing with a pair of doubles on May 4 in Pittsburg, Hart was batting .287.

Macha, like he did earlier in the season with shortstop J.J. Hardy, sat Hart on Wednesday -- prior to an off-day -- to give Hart a "mental break."

On Friday, though, Hart showed some flashes. His seventh-inning home run - just his second in 38 games -- proved to be the difference in Milwaukee's 3-2 victory over the Reds.

He followed that up with three hits in four chances Saturday against Cincinnati and added a base hit Sunday to bring his average up to .256. His power numbers (five home runs, 19 RBI) aren't there, but Macha hopes it's coming around.

"He's come up big in some clutch situations," Macha said. "Hopefully this will be a little relief to him and give him a little confidence. We need that power out of his bat."

Hart made the All-Star team a year ago -- voted in by fans as part of the "Final Vote" campaign -- but fell off considerably after that and having a woeful September and post-season. He admitted during Spring Training this year that he was fatigued and pressing a bit.

His recent slump has been difficult the teams' recent success has made it a little easier to swallow.

"It helps that we're winning," Hart said. "I don't feel as bad as I probably could feel because other guys are stepping up."

Braun among All-Star leaders: In the latest round of All-Star balloting totals, Ryan Braun held onto his position as the leading vote-getter among National League outfielders.

With 908,745 votes, Braun is third overall in the league, trailing just St. Louis first baseman Albert Pujols (1,240,395) and Philadelphia shortstop Chase Utley (1,111,963).

Braun isn't the only Brewers player drawing voters' attention. First baseman Prince Fielder and catcher Jason Kendall are in second place while Weeks, Bill Hall and J.J. Hardy are in third place at their respective positions.

Mike Cameron (sixth) and Corey Hart (eighth) are in the top 10 among National League outfielders.

Starters and reserves for the 80th Mid-Summer Classic will be named on Sunday, July 5. The game will be played on July 14, at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.

Standing pat: Even with Weeks out, general manager Doug Melvin has no plans at the moment to sign any available free agents. He also hasn't entered into any trade talks.

"I don't have any trade discussions going with anybody," Melvin said.

There was talk that Ray Durham was interested in joining the team again, after coming to Milwaukee in a late-season trade last year. But the time needed for Durham to regain playing condition would have been too long.

Organization one of the best: About a dozen front-office staffers traveled to New York last week where SportsBusiness Journal/SportsBusiness Daily announced its "Professional Sports Team of the Year" award.

The Brewers, which set an all-time attendance record on the way to their first postseason appearance in 26 years, were one of five finalists, along with the Boston Celtics, Chicago Blackhawks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Tampa Bay Rays.

The Celtics won the award, which was announced at a banquet Thursday night.

Thanks for watching: SportsBusiness Journal also released ratings for MLB telecasts this year and the Brewers, the trade publication says, are seeing a ratings boost.

Telecasts on FS Wisconsin are reaching an average of 71,000 households, an increase of 14.5 percent compared to last year. The average rating of a Brewers broadcast is 7.89, a 12.6 percent boost from 2008.

Check the standings: The Reds came to town this past weekend a half-game out of first place. They left town embedded in third, 3½ games behind the Brewers after being swept in three games at Miller Park.

Further evidence that the Central Division race could very well go down to the wire; Cincinnati outfielder Brandon Phillips dropped this nugget on the assembled media following Sunday's 5-3 loss:

"I feel we're a better team than the Brewers," Phillips said. "We lost because they did the little things and we didn't do the little things. They're a good team but this should never have happened.

"They executed and that's why they are in first place. We were doing it before we came here and we just weren't the Reds when we came here. They saw us coming behind them and they knew somebody had to step their game up -- either them or us.
"Hey, they're a good team, but we're better."

The Brewers are 5-3 against Cincinnati this season and face the Reds seven more times this season with four games in Cincinnati (July 16-19) and three in Milwaukee (Aug. 25-27).

Try a Snickers: Mat Gamel hasn't done much to challenge for Bill Hall's job as starting third baseman, but the Brewers' highly-touted prospect isn't headed back to the minors any time soon.

The Brewers originally planned to use Gamel during interleague play at Minnesota and return him to Class AAA Nashville where he could play every day. When Rickie Weeks was lost for the season with a broken wrist, the team alerted its plan a little bit.

"He'll get a chance to sink or swim," Macha said.

Gamel was batting .336 with the Sounds when he got the call up, but has struggled to get into a groove with the Brewers. He's hitting .160 and snapped a 0-for-16 slump with an RBI single in the first inning Sunday.

The biggest knock against Gamel has been his defense -- he was charged with eight in 33 games at Nashville this season and had 85 over the previous two seasons with Class A Brevard County, Class AA Huntsville and the Sounds.

Gamel's made five starts at third base and been pretty good so far, committing just one error in nine chances.

Indians demote LaPorta: Matt LaPorta, the Brewers' former top prospect who was shipped to Cleveland last summer in the CC Sabathia deal, was sent by the Indians to Class AAA Columbus last week. LaPorta was hitting just .190 with a home run and four RBI in 13 games since making his big-league debut on May 3. Another player involved in the same trade, lefthander Zach Jackson, was also sent back down. He a had 0-0 record in three appearances (8.2 IP), posting a 9.35 ERA. Ironically enough, Jackson was replaced on the roster by former Brewers hurler Tomo Ohka. Just for reference, outfielder Michael Brantley is hitting .243 with two homers and 14 RBI at Columbus while Rob Bryson, the final player involved in the trade, has yet to pitch in the minors after undergoing surgery on his labrum last winter.

Quick hits: The Brewers won their 30th game of the season in their 50th game, the quickest in team history. ... Trevor Hoffman has converted all 13 of his save opportunities this season and has yet to allow a run (15 innings). ... The Brewers' 14 road victories are the fourth-most in baseball. ... Brewers PR director Mike Vassallo again gets a musical assist: he suggested Todd Coffey enter games to the same music formerly used by WWE superstar "Ultimate Warrior." Coffey, a fan-favorite for his mad dash from the bullpen, thought it was a good idea and gave it the OK. ... The bullpen didn't allow a run in 10 innings of work during the Reds series and has pitched 15 straight shutout innings. ... The Brewers' three errors Sunday were a season high. ... Milwaukee is 27-10 when scoring at least three runs.

On the farm: Nashville beat Omaha, 8-4, Sunday to split a four-game series. The Sounds are 28-24; a game up on Memphis in the North Division. ... Class AA Huntsville has won eight straight and leads the Southern League's North Division by 3½ games. ... Right-hander Mark Rogers struck out three and allowed one hit in two scoreless innings Saturday for Class A (high) Brevard County. ... Longtime "face" of the Class A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, Nikki Becker, has left the organization. Becker handled media and community relations and was the well-known in-game promotions host at Timber Rattlers games.

He said it: "We've got plenty of Advil in the training room." -- Macha, on his penchant for ibuprofen and sneaking up the clubhouse tunnel when "Hells Bells" plays during one of Trevor Hoffman's appearances.

This week: Jeff Suppan takes the mound tonight when the Brewers open up a seven-game road trip with the first of four games at Florida. After that, it's off to Atlanta for a three-game weekend set.

N.L. Central standings (through Sunday): 1, Milwaukee, 30-20; 2, St. Louis, 29-21 (-1); 3, Cincinnati, 26-23 (-3.5); 4, Chicago, 25-24 (4.5); 5, Pittsburgh, 22-28 (8); 6, Houston, 20-28 (-9).