Always the teacher, Ned Yost is hoping his pupils are paying close attention to the current lesson.

After a disastrous trip to the West Coast where the Brewers dropped five of six games to drop to a game below .500, the manager sat his players down before their Friday night contest with the Mets and explained that sometimes, you just need to stop trying.

In no means is that meant to suggest that his team has or will give up on the year. Not in the least. Instead, Yost wants his players -- a mix of veterans and youngsters -- to have respect for their own abilities, as well as an acceptance of their own shortcomings.

"Play within yourself" was the subject of the lecture.

As has been the case in recent seasons, offensive woes have led to some poor decisions at the plate. Yost sees his team pressing, swinging at bad pitches and trying to win the game with a single swing of the bat. That's a far cry from the small-ball approach the team implemented during a five-game winning streak to open the season.

He wants his pupils to step back from the moment and look at the situation.

"You're over-swinging, you're popping balls up, you're not successful with runners in scoring position, you're not successful at manufacturing runs, and you're not successful at making a big pitch when you need to," Yost said. "Those are the things that we need to do to be a championship club."

It's not just the batters. The Brewers' pitching staff has tried to overcompensate at times, too. And with the injuries to Ben Sheets and Tomo Ohka, young pitchers like Ben Hendrickson and Dana Eveland may be tempted to throw just a bit harder than they are capable.

"They just need to go out and be themselves," Yost said. "Nobody can pick anybody up. They just need to go out and do their job, and they'll be fine."

To prove his point, Yost cited a player he worked with in Atlanta, who knows a thing or two about talent.

Greg Maddux, Yost explained, used to say that when the going gets tough, most pitchers tried to throw harder. Maddux however would try to throw softer and a bit slower.

"That's how he wins games," Yost said.

Yost knows that no matter what lectures or examples he and his coaching staff give, he is still dealing with human beings who make a living by being competitive. But in order to harness that competitiveness for a good result, he needs his team to get focused.

"If you don't learn to do it, you'll never play at a championship level," Yost said. "All of these kids want to win bad, but at times there are certain things you have to control -- your emotions are one of them -- to be successful.

"Until we can do that on a consistent basis, we're going to stumble around."

Yost is confident in his players' talent. That isn't a doubt. And he's certain the players are just as sure of their abilities.

"Ability doesn't change," Yost said. "It's the approach that changes."

For one night, the "relax and let it happen" approach worked. Of course, any approach looks successful when rookie first baseman Prince Fielder unleashes a pair of homers.

Whether for an individual or a team, slumps are a part of baseball. The Brewers will certainly encounter more of them - individually and collectively -- this season. It's how they deal with them that will determine their fate.

The next time they hit a skid, Yost, who is a huge NASCAR fan, wants them to know that over-steering -- or, in this case, trying too hard - usually makes things worse.