Tony DeMarco

Maybe it will just be a matter of Prince Fielder's bat heating up, and the big guy putting the team on his back down the stretch.

Or maybe it will come down to the tough-luck loss of co-ace Ben Sheets to an elbow injury that has cast doubt on the rest of his season.

But regardless of how things play out for the Milwaukee Brewers, the decision to fire Ned Yost with only 12 games left will remain a focal point for however long their season extends. And that makes them the most-fascinating contender to watch down the stretch (with apologies to the still-first-place Tampa Bay Rays, of course).

Reaction to Yost's dismissal — unprecedented in its timing — has ranged from flabbergasted (Bobby Cox) to ecstatic (a consensus opinion on a couple of Brewer fans' blog sites) and everything in between.

But in the place where the reaction matters most — the Brewers' clubhouse — we'll use the always-opinionated Ryan Braun as our gauge. His words to MLB.com: “I think there's more of a sense of urgency than ever before.''

And in a nutshell, there is the justification for the decision to replace Yost with coach Dale Sveum — which in case you're still wondering, has been termed by general manager Doug Melvin as a 'collaboration' between he and owner Mark Attanasio.

So no, Attanasio didn't go all Steinbrenner — if we are to believe Melvin, who's always been a straight-shooter with the media. And yes, there were at least some legitimate reasons (as opposed to panic) to make the move — even if it also cost them bench coach Ted Simmons, in protest.

To his credit, Yost has taken the high road here. It also must be noted that beyond Yost's control was a very unreliable bullpen. But the facts are these: The Brewers began September in a 3-11 funk, blowing what was thought to be a very comfortable 5 1/2-game lead in the wild card race.

The offense in general — and Braun and Corey Hart in particular — had screeched to a halt, too stagnant in its philosophy, too unproductive in clutch situations.

Yost was wound way too tightly — his reaction to the scoring decision in CC Sabathia's near no-hitter was way over the line, for example. In fact, in some corners, 'Nervous Ned', as he was coined by one former Brewer, was a source of creating uncertainty and doubt about his team's quest to break a 26-year drought and reach the playoffs.

And then there's that nagging little memory of last season's second-half fold-up. Mix that with Attanasio's payroll expansion and the must-win-now atmosphere created by the acquisition of Sabathia, and you have all the elements for a dramatic change.

And so far?

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Sveum — who managed three seasons at Double-A Altoona before coaching third base for the 2004 Red Sox's title team — has made changes. Wanting to put more speed at the top of the order, he has moved Mike Cameron to the leadoff spot, and is putting him in motion.

To put J.J. Hardy in a run-producing spot — and alleviate some pressure on Hart — Sveum has dropped Hardy to fifth in the order. It worked in Wednesday's win, when Hardy had three hits and two RBI.

Before the revelation of Sheets' elbow issues, Sveum took struggling lefty Manny Parra out of the rotation and put him in the bullpen. (Although with Thursday's extra-inning game that forced Sveum to use scheduled Friday starter Seth McClung, Parra could make a start.)

And showing he can handle a bullpen — if at least for one game — Sveum adroitly made seven pitching changes following Sheets' two innings on Wednesday, with the result being a 6-2 win. Of course, it helps when the offense — led by Fielder, who had six hits in the first two games of the Cubs series — scores more than four runs for the first time since Sept. 2.

But there was yet another crushing, 7-6, 12-inning loss to deal with on Thursday, when with two outs, nobody on and a four-run lead in the bottom of the ninth, Salomon Torres couldn't hold it. If one game ends up breaking the Brewers' backs, that one will be a pretty strong candidate.

At least the rest of the Brewers' schedule appears favorable — a weekend trip to fifth-place Cincinnati, a home series against last-place Pittsburgh (whom the Brewers have beaten 11 of 12 times and nine in a row), and a home series against Chicago, who will already have clinched the division title by then.

The fate of the Sveum experiment — and quite likely, the direction the franchise takes this off-season, when there could be massive changes — rest in the balance.

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