In this lost season I find myself looking for scaled back goals for the team.  With a record of 71-73 as I write this, and 18 games left to play, what are some realistic things to hope for?

There's the obvious: Finishing above .500

This seems highly realistic, requiring a record of 11-7 going forward to be above, 10-8 to be *at* .500.

Winning the Pythagorean race

This is a stretch, as we're 4.5 back.  If the White Sox and Twins both Play .500 ball from here on in (or, say, 9-8), we'd have to go 13-4 to tie, assuming "average" run distributions.  If we win our wins by a lot and lose close ones as we've been doing, however, it may not be such a reach.  If we achieve this goal, we get to play in the hypothetical Pythagorean playoffs on a series of right-triangular fields.  Should be an interesting challenge for our diamond-accustomed players.

Finishing closer to 1st than the 2007 Tigers

We're pretty close to this goal.  The Tribe buried the Tigers under an 8 game lead by the end of last year.  We're 9.5 back now, so this is more than feasible, especially with a series each against the teams ahead of us.

Obviously there are some goals for individual players that could be discussed, but does anyone else have any suggestions for team goals?