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TORONTO – Now would be a good time to start stocking the clubhouses in Baltimore, Detroit, Seattle, New York and Cleveland with extra beer and fried chicken. It will take an Orioles collapse the likes of the 2011 Red Sox for the Blue Jays to emerge American League East champions. The wild card scene, littered with the clubs mentioned above, is cluttered and becomes increasingly complicated the more teams jump between the Jays and the lead dog. The math is simple. Entering Fridays play, the Tigers, leading the second wild card spot by a half-game over the Mariners, were on a percentage pace to win 88 games. In order to get to 88 victories, likely the bare minimum of what it would take to make the postseason, the Jays must go 23-12 over their final 35 games. Thats a winning percentage of .657. The math is daunting. The manager, the coaches and the players know the math. But knowing the math and dwelling on the math, they insist, are two different things. "No, I wasnt very good at math," joked manager John Gibbons. "Actually that was my best subject in school but nobody knows what its going to take; just go out and win some games." "I know that we need to play better than we have been playing," said Adam Lind. "Its still August. There are still a lot of games left, whether it makes it easier or not for us to get into the playoffs. There are still too many games left to start thinking about the end." The Jays are back in Toronto for the longest remaining home stand of the season and the second-longest overall. The club will play nine games against three divisional rivals. First, the Rays come to town and theyll be followed by Boston, an off-day on Thursday and then New York. Working off the need to play at least .657 baseball the rest of the way, The Blue Jays must win at least six of nine (.666) on this home stand. "This is when you find out what players are made of when you get challenges like that," said Dioner Navarro. "Lets see what happens. Weve got Eddie back, Lindy back. Weve got five more weeks to play hard and try to accomplish something that hasnt been accomplished in 20-something years." Since theres no carryover in baseball, the Jays can only hope the offensive slump which temporarily ended in Wednesdays 9-5 win over the Brewers is a sign of things to come. "Were in a pretty good frame of mind. Thats never really been a problem with this group," said Gibbons. "Every games important." The Blue Jays need a strong finish to make the playoffs. Failing a postseason appearance, a strong finish and meaningful games deep into September would set a better tone heading into spring training, multiple players said. Another player confided to TSN.ca what should be considered obvious when factoring in the human subconscious: its easier to want to be at the ballpark everyday, late in the season, when theres something on the line. The aches and pains which accumulate over a long year, exacerbated by Rogers Centres decrepit turf, would not only be more easily tolerated but would go ignored if a playoff spot is in reach. Questions about a starting rotation, full of them in spring, are resurfacing now that the group appears to be regressing. The club is waiting for the recent returns of Edwin Encarnacion and Adam Lind to help bolster an offence thats hit only nine home runs this month. The problem is the waiting and the fact that there isnt any time left to wait. The turnaround, if its to happen, must begin now. Seattle Mariners Gear .Y. -- Major League Soccer has agreed to new measures to protect gay players from discrimination and harassment as a result of meetings with New Yorks attorney general. Mariners Jerseys 2020 .A. Dickey earned an American League Gold Glove on Tuesday to become the first Toronto Blue Jays pitcher to win the award. https://www.cheapmariners.com/ Stitched Mariners Jerseys . - Joao Plata scored twice in the final 24 minutes, including the winner in stoppage time, to help Real Salt Lake remain unbeaten with a 3-2 victory over the winless Chicago Fire on Saturday night. Mariners Jerseys 2019 .Sinclair, from Burnaby, B.C., led the Canadian team with three goals at the four-nation competition. She also earned tournament most valuable player honours.The Canadian captain scored on a penalty kick in the 63rd minute and added the winning goal a minute later.(SportsNetwork.com) - When you take up rock climbing, its probably not a good idea to start with Mount Everest. The worlds highest peak is just under 30,000 feet above sea level and attracts many experienced climbers as the ultimate test of their skills, an obstacle so treacherous it requires bottled oxygen to reach the top, at least for most. So why do people chose to scale Mount Everest? According to George Mallory, who some believe is the first man to reach the summit, Because its there. The Detroit Lions could use some of that Mallory bravado because they are preparing to take on a task that is far more difficult than climbing Earths tallest mountain, at least for them. The Lions Everest is the Green Bay Packers or more specifically the Packers at Lambeau Field. The last time a Detroit team won in Wisconsin George H.W. Bush was president, the Dow Jones average topped 3,000 for the first time, and Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson were still relevant on the pop charts. It was 1991 and the Lions have lost 23 straight in the Badger State since. Postseason play is already assured for both Detroit and Green Bay this time around but plenty will be on the line Sunday when the rivals close the regular season at Lambeau. The winner will not only claim the NFC North title and an all important first- round bye in the playoffs, it will have an outside chance of securing the No. 1 overall seed in the NFC. For Green Bay that would mean a win, coupled with a Seattle loss, while Detroit would need the triumph and setbacks from both the Seahawks and Arizona. Any time you get to play for a division championship, especially in the NFC North, its huge, said Lions guard Rob Sims. Its going to be a good one. The Lions, however, face the daunting history in the winner-take-all contest, along with the opportunity to exorcise some serious demons. To be fair, playing in Green Bay is an issue for most teams because Aaron Rodgers has been nearly flawless on his home field. The Packers are 7-0 at Lambeau in 2014, averaging 41.1 points per game, and Rodgers has been lights out with a almost video-game-like 132.6 passer rating, currently the highest single-season home passer rating in NFL history. If A-Rod keeps that pace up for one more contest he will be breaking his own record of 128.5 set in 2011, and next of the list is, you guessed it, Rodgers at 126.4 in 2013. (Rodgers is) just certainly an exceptional talent, but hes also extremely familiar with the system that they run, Lions first-year coach Jim Caldwell said. I mean, he knows where everyone is. He delivers the ball quickly and on time. When he doesnt hes certainly capable of getting outside of the pocket and gaining ground on the ground with his legs, but then also finding open receivers down the field. I think his famiiliarity, and hes a good decision maker as well.dddddddddddd. Before this season Detroit was known primarily as an offensive team but the Lions are just 20th in total offense at 326.7 ypg and their own QB, Matthew Stafford, has been below average away from Detroit with a 72.8 road passer rating. Yet the Lions are better equipped than most to at least slow Rodgers and the Packers down, entering Week 17 with the second-ranked defense in all of football, a group that allows just 295.9 yards per game. Detroit is also second in points allowed, surrendering only 16.8 per game and have the top- rated run defense (63.8 ypg). You just know its going to be a game where you have to be very efficient throwing the ball, Rodgers said. You have to look for those opportunities for extended plays in the run game and the pass game. Another development that could trend favorably toward Detroit is Rodgers health as the veteran has a lingering calf issue and has also been battling with the flu. We have a full-plate game plan and Im confident hell be able to run it, Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. The real key to Green Bays home success, though, is a near-historic attention to detail. The Packers sport the best turnover differential in the NFL at plus-15 and have given it away just 11 times all season, on pace to be a franchise record and just one above the all-time NFL record of 10 miscues set by the 2010 New England Patriots and matched by the 2011 San Francisco 49ers. I think its very, very difficult in this league to come away from a ball game without gaining a turnover and its very, very tough to win when you lose one or multiple, Caldwell admitted. Weve got to do a great job of protecting the ball, particularly up there (Lambeau Field). You know, typically thats been the problem with teams that have gone up. Theyve turned the ball over numerous times. You give the ball to him (Rodgers) an extra two or three times and believe me, hes going to put some points on the board. Most outside observers think this is a hill too big for the Lions to climb. Green Bay has won 22 consecutive regular-season home games against Detroit and 23 straight overall if you count a 1994 playoff triumph at Lambeau. Add in the fact that Stafford has been under whelming on the road this season and you should have a recipe for the fourth straight NFC North crown for the Packers. Or do the Lions finally reach their summit? I cant do a forecast, Caldwell said. I can only tell you that I hope our experiences have benefited us. Youll find that when you get into this stage of the season, that its going to take your ability to do certain things extremely well and you have to understand that the teams that youre playing have very few deficiencies. But, you can also get hot this time of year. ' ' '