Right-hander Eric Gagne virtually gave manager Ned Yost no choice.

After his latest meltdown Saturday, Gagne told reporters, "I don't deserve that ninth inning right now. It's very simple."

Gagne went on to say he was having a confidence problem. Yost was not aware of those comments until general manager Doug Melvin told him about it Sunday morning.

Basically given no other option, Yost later said he'd be taking Gagne out of the closer's role and going with a "bullpen by committee."

"He probably needs a little bit of a mental break," Yost said. "He's really pushing himself really hard and taking it really, really hard. We'll probably just mix and match."

Gagne is 1-2 with a 6.89 ERA and five blown saves in 14 chances. In a non-save opportunity Saturday against St. Louis, he surrendered two ninth-inning runs to allow St. Louis to pull out a 5-3 victory.

Gagne has allowed 18 hits and 11 walks in 15 2/3 innings, and opponents are batting .400 against him.

Yost said his staff has a handle on why Gagne has struggled and blown three of his last six save chances. He didn't reveal what the mechanical flaw because he didn't want opponents to catch on.

"It's very simple," Yost said. "I'm not going to tell you and I'm not going into it because it's nobody's real business. Plus I don't want to let anybody know in case the opposing team sees it, but it's a simple adjustment that we think can get him back on track."

For now, however, Gagne will have to try to make that adjustment in a different role. Yost said he would use as many pitchers as it takes to get through a ninth inning with a lead, without relying on any one reliever to do it on a regular basis.

Yost is fortunate to have several other veteran relievers in his bullpen who have closing experience. Salomon Torres has 29 career saves, David Riske has 20 and Guillermo Mota has 19, giving Yost three other right-handed veterans to nail down the ninth inning while Gagne's issues are resolved.

Torres started the ninth inning Sunday against St. Louis with a 5-2 lead but when he got in trouble, lefty Brian Shouse was summoned to get the final out and the save in a 5-3 victory.

BREWERS 5, CARDINALS 3: The Brewers have been waiting all season for somebody -- anybody -- to get hot. Maybe LF Ryan Braun is starting to do so, beginning with a three-hit game Saturday and a two-homer game Sunday in the victory over the Cardinals. Like most of the other hitters, Braun has struggled to get going but now has seven homers to tie 3B Bill Hall for the club lead. And RHP Jeff Suppan picked up the victory, which was news in itself. No member of the starting rotation had recorded a "W" other than RHP Ben Sheets since the first week of the season.

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