Dodgers' Kemp Named NL Player of the Month for September

The club will need his hot hitting to continue, if they plan to advance in the playoffs

Matt Kemp could call it a comeback but, instead, I’d bet he’d say - I’ve been here for years. Rockin’ my peers. Puttin’ suckas in fear.

The “puttin’ suckas in fear” part is debatable, giving his injury-plagued 2013 campaign and his tumultuous start to the 2014 season.

But, all is forgiven in La La Land.

Matt Kemp of 2011 reemerged during the second half of the season, playing the match to Adrian Gonzalez’s switch that sparked the Dodgers to their second straight NL West Division title.

For his work, Kemp was named Friday the National League Player of the Month for September. If there was any doubt he would win it, Kemp hushed it by going 2-for-2 with a double and a two-run home run in the regular season finale Sunday against the Rockies.

I’d say he had a pretty good month. The 30-year-old led the league with nine homers, 63 total bases, 21 runs scored and he tied Gonzalez for the league lead with 25 RBIs. He also hit .322 with a .700 slugging percentage and an insane OPS of 1.047.

And, to think, there was a lot of speculation about whether or not Kemp would even be a Dodger when the July 31 trade deadline started to hover.

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Dodgers General Manager Ned Colletti is quick to make the point that none of that talk came from him.

“He’s been great. You don’t miss as much time as he did the last two years and just come back 100 percent. It took him awhile to get his swing back.

“The second half of the season, really, from July on, he’s been one of the best players in the game,” Colletti said.

When you really look into that last statement, Colletti’s got a point.

Offensively, Kemp was two different players in each half.

Pre All-Star: 305 ABs, .269 AVG, 8 HRs, 35 RBIs, .330 OBP, .430 SLG, .760 OPS, 0.00 WAR
Post All Star: 236 ABs, .309 AVG, 17 HRs, 54 RBIs, .365 OBP, .606 SLG, .971 OPS, 1.8 WAR

It was quite a turnaround for a guy who struggled while recovering from a surgically repaired left ankle, was yanked out of center field for one misplayed ball too many and, in May, was relegated to a cheerleading fourth outfielder.

Sure, manager Don Mattingly deserves some credit for 1) having the guts to put the team over Kemp’s ego by moving him to left field and 2) not caring when his disgruntled star told SportsNet LA, the Dodgers flagship cable network, that “When it’s all said and done, I’m going to be playing center field again,” then moving Kemp to right.

But, ultimately, Kemp’s resurgence in 2014 can be summed up in one word: health.

He finally. Got. Healthy.

Kemp’s surgically repaired left shoulder, along with the left ankle, got right again. The speed may not be there and, truthfully, a 39-homer/40-steal season may never happen again. But, when the trademark, post-homer pose returned, with his left hand extending the bat to the sky like a gladiator hoisteing his sword at the start of battle, so did Matt Kemp.

The Dodgers are just hoping that he he’s licked his wounds from doing battle in 150 games, and he’s ready to slay all comers, starting Friday night, against a red clad army from St. Louis. 

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