ST. PETERSBURG -- The curveball from Detroit's Justin Verlander broke hard over the outside corner of the plate. Adam Lind offered, using a smooth swing to connect with the baseball. Eyes still locked on the white orb, Lind watched it arc high over left field and land beyond the wall inside Comerica Park.After leaving the batter's box on Monday night in Detroit, the Jays Blue ' young designated hitter made his way around the bases in 22 seconds -- time enough for Lind to realize his accomplishment. That three-run home run in the sixth inning gave Lind 100 RBIs this season, a notable milestone for any power hitter. "I know he was quite pleased," Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston said. "It's the only time I've ever seen him point up to the sky when he crossed home plate." Told of Gaston's observation, Lind couldn't help but smile, just as he struggled to contain a grin after that memorable moment earlier this week. Lind -- a soft-spoken Indiana boy -- is not one for on-field flash or celebrating his own achievements. Looking up at the stars and lifting his arms in the air after launching that home run was out of character for him. However, Lind felt that was one time he could allow himself to appreciate his success this year. Driving in 100 runs is no easy feat. Neither is turning in a spectacular season that has flown under the radar. "I just couldnt believe that I did it," Lind said. "My mom always tells me to thank God for all the ability that he's given me, so I decided there'd be no better time than then to be my first time showing that. I don't really do that too much, but I figured it's kind of a big-time number. I thank God for allowing me to do that." Lind has always shown a natural ability to hit, but Gaston is quick to point out that hard work and a willingness to listen has helped the DH flourish this season. There were times during the past two years when Lind struggled with confidence and was left wondering if he would ever figure out how to succeed on the big league stage. That now seems like ancient history. This season, the left-handed-hitting Lind has batted .297 with 30 home runs and 103 RBIs through 139 games. He is tied for second in the American League with 46 doubles and is fourth in the league with 299 total bases. Only sluggers Albert Pujols of the Cardinals and Mark Teixeira of the Yankees have more extra-base hits than the 76 Lind has piled up to this point. Lind has also shown a dramatic improvement in plate discipline. His 71 hits with two strikes are tied for first in the Majors, and Lind has seen an average of 4.05 pitches per plate appearance -- up from 3.74 a year ago. All of this has helped Lind become a threat in the heart of Toronto's lineup, allowiing him to become the quickest Jays hitter to reach 100 RBIs since 2003. A main reason behind Lind's showing is how fast he bought into Gaston's offensive philosophy. "He's a real coachable kid," Gaston said. "You can talk to him during a game. A couple of times this year, he'd be getting late started and I'd mention it to him, and he'd get right back to where he needs to go. He's very coachable. He's a pleasure to talk hitting to, because he's so receptive of it and he buys into the plan." For the 26-year-old Lind, a large part of that "plan" is to simply let his swing do the work. Prior to Gaston's arrival midway through last season, Lind said he was trying to force things at the plate. Under the previous coaching staff, Lind focused on going to the opposite field often. He believes that contributed to his struggles in the Majors and, in turn, led to the handful of trips back to the Minor Leagues. In 2007, an early-season injury to Reed Johnson forced the Jays to promote Lind -- a third-round pick in the '04 First-Year Player Draft -- to Toronto after he spent just eight games at Triple-A. Lind, who boasts a career .318 average in the Minors, hit at an uncharacteristic .238 clip over 89 games with the Jays that year. "I really didn't have a clue what I was doing," Lind said. "You see a lot of rookies go through it, because you're no longer playing against kids or developing people. You're playing against grown men who are at the top of their game every day. Really, I probably shouldn't have even been around that year, but because of injury, I was forced to play." Heading into 2008, Lind dedicated himself to improving his swing and approach over the winter, and he was convinced me made positive strides as the season approached. Then, during a six-game stint with the Jays between April 26-May 4 last year, Lind went 1-for-19 at the plate before being sent back to Triple-A to sort out his offensive issues. It was a disheartening demotion and an experience that left Lind feeling lost. "After going through '07, I knew I could hit here," Lind said. "I just had to figure out why I didn't hit. I thought I figured out a lot that offseason, going into the '08 season, and then I had a tough streak there in early May. That's when I was really disappointed, because I thought I had things going. I thought I kind of figured it out. "That's one thing about this game -- you'll never have it figured out, because there's always constant changes. If you're hot in one spot of the zone, they're not going to keep throwing it there. You have to keep switching back and forth. The old saying: 'It's a game of adjustments.'" Gaston and hitting coach Gene Tenace, who joined the Jays' staff on June 20 last season after the club parted ways with manager John Gibbons and a pair of his coaches, helped Lind realize what he needed to correct. Lind was recalled a few days after they arrived and he went on to hit .296 over the final 82 games of '08. "I think what they did," Lind said, "was they really helped me figure out who I am as a hitter instead of trying to do the old hitting ways of 'opposite field, opposite field.' I know I hit a lot of balls to the opposite field, but when I got here, I tried to do it. Now, I just let my swing path dictate where the ball goes instead of trying to force a ball into a certain part of the field." With 16 games remaining on the schedule for the Blue Jays this season, Lind is starting to realize how far he has come from '07 and '08. That was evident when he lifted his hands toward the sky after that home run in Detroit. After this season comes to a close, Lind knows he will have plenty of time -- more than a trip around the basepaths -- to really sit back and appreciate what he has achieved. "I haven't really thought about it at all, because we're still go, go, go," Lind said. "When we fly back to Baltimore [for the final series of the year] and I've got an eight-hour drive home, I'll probably think about it quite a bit."