Ever the optimist, Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston maintains faith in his club's ability to enjoy a strong finish to this troublesome 2008 season. When asked what would be a realistic goal down the stretch, Gaston didn't hesitate.
"I think we can get, I'm hoping, 10 games above .500," Gaston said. "But, I don't know. We'll see. ... We've been so close to winning a series every time out."

That's a lofty goal for Gaston's Jays, who currently reside in fourth place in the American League East standings. On Wednesday, Toronto will continue its current four-game set with Baltimore, which dropped into fifth place after the Jays' 10-8 win on Tuesday night.

First things first, the Blue Jays have their sights set on .500 -- a mark they haven't reached since the club was 35-35 on June 14. If Toronto is going to finish 10 games above the break-even mark, the team needs to post a 37-25 record over the season's final 62 games.

That would net 86 victories for the Jays, who have won at least that many just twice (87 wins in 2006 and 86 in 2003) since J.P. Ricciardi took over as general manager prior to the 2002 season. Finishing with a .500 record this season might be more realistic, but Gaston wants to aim higher.

"We want to get above .500," Gaston said. "If we get above .500, I think it's certainly going to help us to go the other way. We're going to realize, 'Hey, we're above .500. Let's go.' But it's going to be a tough battle the rest of the way."


http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com/news/artic...t=.jsp&c_id=tor

Set the bar high, I guess.

cal me crazy but I say the jays finish 24 games above .500 :P 15 game winning streak here we come.

I don't remember the last time the Blue Jays won over 90 games.