Small sample sizes - Batting

Pat the Bat salutes the Blunted Stophers' doubters.

One of my favorite features of the Sportsline site is the stat report for all players started. It gives a good snapshot of why teams are doing so well, or so poorly -- and more importantly, how that's likely to change. Here's a look around the league (all stats through Friday's games).

Points this year - Team - Current Season (2007 season, based on current rosters)

1) 329 pts. - Isotopes - .276/.359/.500 (.284/.351/.469 in '07)
Tied for the league lead in HRs with the Satanists at 17, the Topes are getting a boost by the possible return to form of Vernon Wells, who has 56 in just under two weeks. While Hanley Ramirez and Fat Albert won't continue to slug .700 the rest of the season, there's still some room for improvement as Ryan Zimmerman (.192/.204/.362) and Robinson Cano (.159/.178/.182) haven't woken up yet.

2) 328 pts. - Limerick Lynchmob - .284/.360/.471 (.294/.377/.493)
Derek Lee and Jhonny Peralta are off to torrid starts, but otherwise everything's pretty much going as expected for the Mob offense. If anything, they should get some help from the struggling Rickie Weeks (.175/.283/.275) and Hunter Pence (.196/.213/.304).

3) 320 pts. - Blunted Stophers - .306/.377/.499 (.284/.354/.490)
On paper, the Blunted actually had the top offense in the CWFLB last year, and they're picking up where they left off. Pat the Bat is other-worldly right now, mashing at a clip of .400/.512/.857. He'll come back to earth, but Russell Martin should pick up his .156/.308/.219 pace and Curtis Granderson's return should help. The Stophers' offense has never really been their problem. Although with an owner who gives starts to guys like Melky Cabrera (.273/.327/.391 on the season last year), it becomes much less stable.

4) 297 pts. - T-Baggers - .320/.396/.505 (.286/.351/.456 in '07)
Break up the Baggers! Last year's laughingstocks have stormed out the gate, but don't take those brown paper bags off your heads yet T-Bag fans. The scorching hot Mark Reynolds (.308/.372/.718), Rafael Furcal (.432/.545/.703) and Jermaine Dye (.382/.432/.677) will most certainly come back to earth.

5) 294 pts - MattroStars - .257/.297/.459 (.295/.368/.493 in '07)
That OBP is brutal, but with guys like Ichiro (.276/.320/.383), Dan Uggla (.184/.262/.421), Jim Thome (.143/.211/.371), Joe Mauer (.278/.308/.333) and Garrett Atkins (.263/.293/.316) all off to slow starts, the Stars should see much better days ahead.

6) 294 pts - Bashful Satanists - .291/.341/.502 (.275/.340/.468 in '07)
The Satanists are doing it with the long ball. Their offense is playing pretty near its potential, save for Johnny Damon (.211/.302/.316). Howie Kendrick's hitting .429/.467/.571, but somehow that's only equated to 30 points in just under two weeks. But all in all, in the early going, The Satanists look like a playoff contender.

7) 279 pts. - Daddy's Little Boys - .236/.329/.391 (.287/.365/.490 in '07)
Ouch. You know the DLB are off to a slow start when B.J. Upton and his .270/.386/.351 line is leading the team in scoring. The reason for the slow start? Their bottom four performers are usually their top four. Something tells me Miguel Cabrera (.182/.308/.303), David Ortiz (.077/.250/.154), Mark Teixeira (.180/.256/.359) and Carl Crawford (.222/.255/.222) will come back to life pretty quickly.

8) 273 pts. - Jackrabbits - .238/.317/.419 (.279/.354/.459 in '07)
Ryan Howard (.195/.306/.390) and and injured Derek Jeter are the biggest culprits here. Eric Byrnes (.154/.241/.346, 1 SB) should improve. They'll all help, but the rest of the team's pretty much in line with their expectations. If the Jackrabbits go deep into the playoffs it will certainly be because of their pitching, not their bats.

9) 244 pts. - Hells Kitchen Herzogs - .260/.352/.410 (.286/.361/.482 in '07)
A picture of mediocrity. Rockies Troy Tulowitzski (.175/.267/.225) and Brad Hawpe (.214/.371/.393) are off to terrible starts. A 2-for-23 week for Placido Polanco didn't help either. But if these are the guys your team's relying on to perform, you're probably in a little bit of trouble.

10) 242 pts. - Norris Slum Lords - .224/.318/.358 (.294/.373/.505 in '07)
Pretty ugly line from a team with a pretty good offense. Just 9 homers on the year. The good news for the Lords is that Alfonso Soriano (.170/.235/.319) and Adam Dunn (.194/.422/.290) are starting to come around this week. They're hoping Prince Fielder (.243/.326/.324, 0 HR) comes next.

11) 223 pts. - Elephant Balls - .260/.345/.372 (.296/.375/.481 in '07)
It's been a pretty dismal start to the season for the E-Ball offense. Nearly the entire starting lineup isn't living up to expectations (with the possible exceptions of Bobby Abreu and Ian Kinsler). When David Wright's leading your team with a .265/.390/.471 line and 1 HR, you know your team's slumping. Even the E-Balls normally potent speed game has abandoned them 6 SB vs. 3 CS this year.

12) 221 pts. - AC's Gun Show - .226/.305/.382 (.278/.356/.468 in '07)
The good news? New guys Chase Utley and Carlos Pena are both slugging over .600. The bad news? New guys Andruw Jones (.114/.184/.143), Edgar Renteria (.238/.289/.310) and Mike Lowell (.200/.294/.200 and now hurt) have all sucked. They're not this bad, and those numbers would likely be higher had they started Nick Johnson at 1B and ended this ridiculous infatuation with Adam Laroche.