Kemp Steals his 22th

[StringerBell]

Kemp has 9 HRs and 22 SBs. I would have thought those numbers would be reversed. I was hoping for 25/15 at the beginning of the season. Is a power surge from Kemp gonna come this year? (avoiding the 0-2 in every count might be a good start........)

[Montana168]

i think the dodgers in general are a team to watch out for the in the second half. loney hit .382 in june and is still hitting and i look for his power to hopefully pick up. ethier is as hot as he's ever been right now. kemp was going through a rough june but looks like he is starting to pick it up a bit. look for those three guys to have great numbers...only downside though is ethier will probably see his at bats cut down significantly once juan pierre returns...unless andruw jones gets hurt again.

[freeling_prideful]

Kemp's horrible plate discipline and huge K rates will hold him back from a gigantic breakout, but I could definitely see him hitting 10-12 homers in the second half and getting a 20/30 season in the books pretty easily.

[Montana168]

thats exactly what i was thinking^^. a 20/30 season is pretty much a lock for kemp right now. i wouldn't be too worried about kemp's k rate right now because that's usually typical of young guys. go look at at braun's walk to k rate...it's ridiculus. i think a 20/30 is a lock...i'm hoping for a 25/35 and look for him to hopefully get 30/30 next year.

[The Artful Dodger]

The high K rate is expected. Even if Kemp has improved his pitch recognition, there will be times he looks lost at the plate. The reason why his power pace is down compared to the 25 HR projections most had is because Kemp is encouraged more to put the ball in play. He has a prodigious power stroke but cutting down on that stroke a bit could translate into cutting down on the K's a bit. Now, that hasn't quite computed.

That said, I think Torre is doing the right thing with Kemp in having him at the leadoff or two-hole, leadoff in the absence of Pierre. With Martin and Kent behind him, both of whom are hitting better, Kemp could see a few more select pitches, but again pitchers will try to be more deceptive in mixing their pitches, making Kemp lose focus at times. Kemp should be good enough to post 15-20 HR and swipe 30 bags.

[Siddo4ty4]

They shouldve traded Kemp for Sabathia... to bad the plan didnt work out.

[Montana168]

when i heard rumors that kemp was part of a package to get sabathia i thought 'what a dumb move'. the dodgers have one of the top NL pitching staffs, starting rotation and bullpen...the last thing they need is another pitcher. i think it would have hurt them more if they would have traded one of their top young bats for a pitcher who will leave after this year.

[Siddo4ty4]

when i heard rumors that kemp was part of a package to get sabathia i thought 'what a dumb move'. the dodgers have one of the top NL pitching staffs, starting rotation and bullpen...the last thing they need is another pitcher. i think it would have hurt them more if they would have traded one of their top young bats for a pitcher who will leave after this year.

Well Im thinking from a fantasy perspective, the Dodgers have been shopping Kemp around because they have a crowded back field. Kemp would be able to produce more with the Brewers and help fantasy teams better.

For an Organizational move, I can see why you think it would be a bad deal.

[StringerBell]

A frustrating little update from CBS Sportsline:

"(Matt Kemp)...has now struck out 32 times in his past 90 plate appearances beginning June 20."

He goes 0 + 2 in a ridiculous amount of his ABs. Is there any stats source that records every pitch a guy sees? I`d love to see the actual numbers on how often Kemp digs a hole for himself.

[tah161]

The thing about Kemp is he is not making adjustments to the pitchers. I have also seen a few times where he is inline for a walk but he will chase crap allowing the at-bat to continue. If he can start making adjustments, i think you will see those numbers flip in the second half. Around 15 HR's, and 8-12 SB.