CINCINNATI -- When the Brewers designated Justin Lehr for assignment on Tuesday, it did not necessarily mean the club was finished "shuffling the deck," as one top official put it.

"He might be first, but he's not necessarily the last," assistant general manager Gord Ash said.

The Brewers, who entered play Tuesday ranked next-to-last in the National League with a 4.92 ERA, replaced Lehr with journeyman Joe Winkelsas. Ash and Brewers manager Ned Yost said they would make more moves if necessary to strengthen a 13-man pitching staff that is nonetheless thin because of injuries and a recent string of short starts.

Ash has already forecasted one pending transaction. The Brewers were blocked from calling up reliever Chris Mabeus on Monday because of a roster technicality, and intend to try again when Mabeus becomes eligible on Friday. Right-hander Carlos Villanueva likely will return to Double-A Huntsville at that time, though Ash said the club is keeping its options open.

One Brewer likely on the hot seat is right-hander Chris Demaria, who has a 7.88 ERA in six outings this month.

"He hasn't been real sharp out there, either," Yost said. "He needs to pick it up a little bit.

"We all need to pick it up a little bit -- everybody. ... Everybody needs to pick up the slack during these times. It's not a one-man or two-man problem. It's a staff problem."

The problems began when the Brewers suffered a string of injuries. Right-hander Rick Helling has been out since early April with an elbow injury, but he is scheduled to throw a third bullpen session on Wednesday and is on track to return in mid-June. The team is also missing right-handed starters Tomo Ohka and Ben Sheets, who are both out with shoulder injuries and are not close to returning.

Moving on: Lehr has returned home to Phoenix until his fate is decided. The Brewers have 10 days to trade Lehr, release him or pass him through waivers and assign him outright to the Minor Leagues. Because he has no prior outright assignment, Lehr would have no choice but to accept that assignment, Ash said.

"If there is Major League interest in him, we don't want to stand in his way, but on the flip side we need all the depth we can get right now," Ash said. "We're scrambling to keep the [Minor League] rosters full. ... The state of pitching around the game is not good, and we're part of that. In fact, we're probably better off than some."

In 16 games with Milwaukee, Lehr was 2-1 with a 8.62 ERA. He did not allow an earned run until his sixth appearance of the season, but since then Lehr's ERA was 10.38.

"This is a game built around production," said Yost, who admitted he was puzzled by Lehr's drop in production. "You can get here, but you've got to earn your keep to stay here. That's true for all of us. ... He started the season very sharp, and then just kind of tailed off."

Should the Brewers hold onto Lehr and send him back to the Minors, he would join the starting rotation, Ash said.

"Guys go through these streaks," Ash said. "When I spoke to him this morning at the hotel he said that this is probably the first time in his career that he agreed with the assignment. So it was not unexpected for him, and he knows what he needs to work on."

Damage control: Ash understood that the decision to promote Winkelsas from Double-A Huntsville might not be popular with players at Triple-A Nashville who were passed over. Mike Adams, Jared Fernandez, Jason Kershner, Dennis Sarfate and Allan Simpson were among those considered.

"There are going to be some guys in Nashville who are unhappy with this move," said Ash, who spoke to Nashville pitching coach Stan Kyles about that topic on Tuesday morning. "I told him to tell them, 'Don't get down and don't put yourself in a negative position, because our bullpen is far from settled. There will continue to be changes.'"

Last call: Yost elected to keep catcher Damian Miller (back spasms) out of the lineup for a second straight day. Miller did take batting practice before Tuesday's game. ... Helling upped his load to 40 pitches in the bullpen on Monday and mixed in some changeups and cut fastballs. He said he felt fine on Tuesday, and could throw a simulated game as early as this weekend in Philadelphia before heading out for a Minor League rehabilitation assignment.

Coming up: Left-hander Doug Davis (2-3, 5.14 ERA) will start for the Brewers in Wednesday's series finale against Reds lefty Brandon Claussen (3-4, 4.99 ERA). First pitch is 6:10 p.m. CT.