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Matt Kemp in search of himself while again on Dodgers bench

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Matt Kemp sits again.

Sits and wonders? Sits and thinks? Sits and pouts?

Who knows, this is after all Matt Kemp, the player who would be a superstar.

Only right now, he’s not. He hasn’t even been a good ballplayer, so the frustration has him sitting again tonight in Philadelphia.

If you have to ask why, then you really haven’t been paying attention. Kemp’s focus, never his strongest point, seems to have wavered even further astray.

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Until a pinch-hit single Tuesday night, he was in a 1-for-20 skid with seven strikeouts. In his last start Sunday, he struck out four times in four at-bats on 15 pitches. That’s hard to do.

So Joe Torre sat him Tuesday, and when Jay Gibbons went three for four with a home run and three RBIs in his place, Torre went back to him tonight.

Torre told reporters in Philadelphia: ‘We had a good result [Tuesday] night so I’m going to see if we can ride as long as we can.… It’s all about winning games right now.’’

Which is absolutely correct, of course. This is the time to put forth the team you believe will give you the best chance to win that night. And no one rides a hot hand like Torre.

But Torre was more revealing about his concern over Kemp’s play last weekend, before the Dodgers began this trip.

Asked before Kemp’s fiasco on Sunday what he would tell fans concerned about Kemp’s play, Torre said:

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‘I think he’s trying to find out about himself, to be honest with you. This is a game where you’ve got to continue to improve and learn on an everyday basis.

‘I think he’s still a young player, when you talk about playing baseball. And this game can beat you down. I think he gets very frustrated.’

Certainly, Kemp has not improved this season. Aside from home runs, all his numbers are down from this point in the season a year ago:

Avg. HRs RBI SBs

2009 .313 16 75 23
2010 .260 18 63 16

The Dodgers hoped his 2009 season was the beginning of his breakthrough, a step the five-tool Kemp took from good to great player.

Only it hasn’t happened. Instead, he’s regressed.

‘Last year he spoiled everybody by the way he played,’ Torre said. ‘We had higher expectations for him. I’m sure he had higher expectations for himself. We talked the first day he came to spring training, he was filled with all this energy about ‘Let’s keep going. Blah, blah, blah.’ And then he hit that wall in late April, or wherever it was, and had a terrible May and June.

‘The only thing I can say is what you saw last year, and what you see at times this year, the thing missing is consistency. The only thing I can say to the fans who are concerned -- and we’re all concerned -- is just to invest a little more time.’

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The Dodgers have little choice. Players with his talent are rare.

Still, his lack of focus and intensity drives his coaches nuts. He almost seems to try and play casually. The poor baserunning, bad jumps, the lazy at-bats can wear anyone down.

He’s again worn down the coaching staff. He’s just too talented to sit for long. But right now it’s about winning, not grooming. Right now, it’s about producing.

So he sits again tonight, still trying to find himself. Sits and thinks, what?

-- Steve Dilbeck

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