MILWAUKEE -- The second half of the Brewers' 2004 season was entirely forgettable. But manager Ned Yost is hoping his players don't forget it.

"It's still fresh in my mind," Yost said. "That was definitely something I do not want to repeat. It's still there. And my whole focus from the end of last year was to get through the first half and keep ourselves in position where we can accomplish our goal ... to continue to improve instead of falling flat on our faces."

That's what the Brewers did last year. The team was 38-34 at the All-Star break but went 22-53 afterward, the worst second-half collapse in baseball history for a team that was over .500 at the midway point.

There is some eerie symmetry to their start this season. The Brewers were 43-38 at the mathematical midway point of 2004; they were 38-43 this year. They were four games over .500 at the All-Star break last year; they're four games under this year.

Maybe that means the Brewers are on pace for a great second half instead of a terrible one.

"We all know how we felt in the second half," said first baseman Lyle Overbay, whose batting average was 99 points lower in the second half last season. "That's motivation enough not to do it again. It's something to learn from. We have to play good baseball and continue to get better; last year, we didn't."

Yost met for several hours on Tuesday with Brewers general manager Doug Melvin, assistant GM Gord Ash and owner Mark Attanasio and discussed ways to get better. Yost said he could use more depth in the bullpen and more speed off the bench, and with Melvin on a tour of Minor League affiliates this week, the team could be exploring possible promotions from within.

Rock solid: Yost decided to start Carlos Lee in his usual spots -- left field and the cleanup hole -- for Thursday's second-half opener against the Washington Nationals at Miller Park. Coming off a busy All-Star week in Detroit, Lee has started all 89 Brewers games this season.

"I thought about it for a long time," said Yost, who also participated in the 76th All-Star Game as an honorary coach. "But wanting to get off on the right foot at the start of the second half, it's kind of hard to put your best offensive players on the bench."

Lee has driven home 76 runs, a Brewers franchise record for RBIs before the All-Star break. He set the record on Sunday at Atlanta, then traveled with Brewers owner Mark Attanasio to Detroit, where Lee made it to the semifinals of the Home Run Derby.

Yost told Lee to skip batting practice on Thursday, and may finally give him a day off on Sunday.

"The All-Star break is a grind, man," Yost said. "It's worth the effort because it is the time of a lifetime."

Learning experience: Yost said he learned a lot over the break about St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, who managed the National League squad and chose Yost as a member of the staff.

"I could never understand some of the moves Tony would make, or what he would be doing over there, but I completely understand now," Yost said. "I understand his line of thinking a lot more."

LaRussa is sometimes criticized for over-managing, and often uses three or four pitchers in one inning to get the optimum matchups. It frustrates fans and sometimes even baffles opponents.

"But I completely understand why he does it now, where I didn't understand it before," Yost said. "People knock Tony for that -- I think that they do. I've sat there and wondered. But, I tell you what, I see exactly what he's doing now. It goes to managerial style and some people agree and some might not agree."

Long time coming: It took 25 professional appearances, but Mark Rogers finally got his first win. The right-handed Rogers, Milwaukee's first-round pick in the 2004 First-Year Player Draft, allowed two runs in five innings Tuesday and improved to 1-9 in his career. He often did not qualify for wins early in his career because the Brewers limited him to fewer than five innings.

This season, Rogers is 1-6 with a 4.53 ERA for Class A West Virginia.

On deck: Ben Sheets will try build on momentum from his two most recent starts when he faces the Nationals in the second game of the series Friday night. Sheets has won his last two starts and his last three decisions and will face 12-game winner Livan Hernandez of Washington.