VANCOUVER (AP): If you have a minute, check out the BL Roehm Division standings. Look, and look again. Who's that team in third place, 2 games behind 2nd place Havana and 5 games behind 1st place Long Beach? Could it really be the Vancouver Mounties? It's true. The former doormats of the BL are back with a vengance so far in 2011.

"We've been playing some really good baseball this season", said Mounties Manager Ryne Sandberg. "The improvement is, in part, due to the addition of Babe Ruth in the lineup."

The Babe, who hasn't been hitting up to his usual lofty standards so far this season, has inspired his teammates to big improvements this season. "The Twin Towers, Rich Aude and Tony Clark, are both hammering the ball so far this season", said Sandberg. Aude, a career .247 hitter is hitting .265 with 6 homers. Clark, whose career average is a miniscule .234, is tied for the BL lead in home runs with 7 and is hitting .293.

"We're also getting two guys up top of the order, the sophomores Jim Tipper and Dick Simpson, setting the table perfectly for the big guys", said Sandberg. "Every time Rich and Tony get up to the plate, there's a man in scoring position."

Tipper, acquired along with two draft picks from Belfast for catcher Bill East, is hitting .289 this season and is leading the BL in stolen bases with 11. Dick Simpson, who was acquired from Cairo in the deal which saw Rocky Coppinger and Bill Keener join Cairo, is also hitting .289 this season - and he's tied for second in the BL with 10 steals. "Both of these kids have come such a long way since last year - neither of them hit over .200 and both of them came into Spring Training this season looking to atone for last year. They've both proven that they are two of the best young prospects in the league."

The pitching staff has been something of an enigma for Vancouver this season.

"One day we can shut the other team out, and the next day we're going deep into the bullpen to bail out starters who are getting shelled. It's nice to know that we can count on Sean Johnson though, he has been brilliant so far this season."

Sean Johnson and Denny McLain have both been outstanding as usual, but the 3, 4, and 5 starters have not performed up to Vancouver's heightening expecations. Insiders expect to see Vancouver persuing some of the game's top pitchers in an effort to bolster their rotation.

"We have a couple of options", said GM Cory Muzyka. "We can either look around the league and offer up some of our young talent in exchange for pitching help right now, or we can look to our minor leagues to see if some of the young talent is ready to make the jump to the big leagues right now. Either way, something is going to be done here because we are not satisfied with the contribution from a number of our pitchers."

No matter what happens, fans in Vancouver are getting a sneak preview of the fun and excitement that will come in the next few years as the young team has a chance to win every game.