Matt Kemp Undergoes Exam On Injured Shoulder
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Los Angeles Dodgers center fielder Matt Kemp will miss at least the final two games of this weekend's key series at San Francisco because of his troublesome left shoulder.
Kemp was scheduled for an MRI exam Saturday using dye contrasting to give doctors a better idea of where he is hurt. His shoulder is still bothering him from a crash into the outfield wall Aug. 28 at Coors Field.
Manager Don Mattingly expects Kemp to return this season. The injury affects Kemp at the plate and the Dodgers want to find out exactly what is wrong.
''We lost him at least temporarily, we know that,'' Mattingly said before the middle game of the series. ''The shoulder with Matt has kind of gotten to the point where we need to find out exactly what it is.''
The Dodgers had planned to do further tests during Thursday's off day but Kemp was concerned about missing a couple of days in a crucial stretch, Mattingly said. Because of the shot for the dye to be inserted, players typically need a couple of days to recover.
''I think he's come to the realization he needs to make sure what this is, and we'll go from there,'' Mattingly said. ''He didn't want to miss any days, which is admirable. But we still need to find out really what's going on with this. I talked to him the other day about it. I appreciate him wanting to play and wanting to be tough and go out there, but at some point you've got to be able to be honest and say, 'Either I can help the team or I can't help the team.' If it's hurting him to swing the bat and do some things, it doesn't do us any good for him to be out there.''
Kemp, last season's runner-up to Ryan Braun for the NL MVP, is batting .315 with 18 home runs and 56 RBIs in 85 games. In the game at Colorado, he ran into the wall trying to track down a triple by Josh Rutledge. Kemp turned into the padding while running full speed and fell backward onto the warning track. He stayed down for several minutes as team trainers checked him over. He got up, took a drink of water and initially stayed in the game.
Kemp went 0 for 5 with an RBI and a strikeout on Friday night. He already spent two stints on the disabled list this season before the All-Star break with a strained left hamstring. Kemp is hitting .290 (58 for 200) with six home runs and 28 RBIs in 49 games since coming off the DL.
''Just go out and play. No excuses,'' right fielder Andre Ethier said of playing without Kemp. ''You can't have any excuses in this game.''
Infielder Adam Kennedy is likely done for the year after injuring his groin during Friday's 5-2 loss. Mattingly said Kennedy was hurt when the third baseman tried to barehand Hunter Pence's infield bouncer for an RBI single in the sixth inning.
''He felt something pop,'' Mattingly said. ''I haven't heard anything definitive about whether he's going to play again or not, but it doesn't sound very good.''
