Vernon Wells is intent on ending the season the way he started - with a flourish at the plate.
After serving notice at the beginning of the season that his swing was back with four home runs in his first three games, the veteran Toronto Blue Jays centrefielder is once again picking up the pace as the year begins to wind down.
Wells swatted two more home runs, giving him four over his last three games as the Blue Jays won for the second straight outing against the Texas Rangers, 8-5 Tuesday night at Rogers Centre.
Wells now has 27 home runs on the year, quite the turn-around from last season when injuries robbed him of much of his power and he finished with just 15.
"We still have games to play, we still have jobs to do," Wells said. "You try to go out and do what you can to help the team win. I think we still have a lot to prove. We need to get better as a team, as an organization and continue to play the game the right way."
With just 24 games left in the season and the team's playoff chances all but dried up, Wells believes what the Blue Jays accomplish over the next several weeks will have far reaching consequences as to how the team fares in 2011.
"I think the experience some of these young guys are getting can help a lot going into next year and hopefully add some pieces here and there to make this team better," he said.
It has been an inconsistent season for Wells, who cooled off considerably at the plate during the middle stages of the season before springing back as of late.
He was asked if it was much of an adjustment for him having to hit behind Jose Bautista in the batting order for most of the season. Bautista leads the major leagues in home runs and sucks up a lot of RBI opportunities.
"My neck got sore just watching balls fly out of the ball park," Wells said. "It's been fun to watch him do what he's been doing. He doesn't seem to leave too many guys on but I've still got to be better with guys in scoring position when I do get those rare opportunities to drive them in."
The victory was Toronto's second in a row over the Rangers, who are leading the American League West.
It was also a milestone in the managing career of Cito Gaston, who won his 900th game (including postseason) as the Blue Jays skipper, a job from which he will step down from at the end of the year.
Gaston said he was proud of the accomplishment and Wells said it is a significant achievement.
"I think he's done a lot in this game and for this city," Wells said. "I think the guys in here want to finish strong and have him go out the right way."