A couple of days ago I posted a reply in a thread over on the ThinkBlueLA.com forum indicating that, in my opinion, if Matt Kemp started hitting with power again, others would soon follow suit – especially the new guys. The next day at the Ravine, I mention this same thing to my good friend Andy, a fellow Left Field Pavilion season ticket holder. Andy asked me if I honestly believed that Matt Kemp had that much influence on his teammates, especially the newcomers, since they themselves had a history of being team leaders on their former teams (a very good question). I told Andy that I absolutely believed this because Kemp is clearly the unofficial captain of the Dodgers and because the newcomers had yet to fully establish themselves on this team.

Will Matt Kemp’s solo home run in the 2nd inning of Sunday’s game be the much needed catalyst that gets the rest of the Dodger team fired up for the stretch run? (Photo credit – Mark J. Terrill)

Sure enough,  Sunday’s thrilling come-from-behind win was the result of a 2-run walk-off double by Dodger newcomer Adrian Gonzalez in the bottom of the 9th of a game in which Matt Kemp had hit a solo home run earlier. It was Kemp’s first home run in nearly a month. Granted, Matt has been battling injuries of late – especially a sore shoulder after his head-on collision with the center field wall at Coors Field a week ago, but let’s face it, Kemp has been in a power slump since his return from the disabled list after the All-Star break.

Is it really possible for one guy to be have that kind of influence on the rest of the team and actually be a catalyst to get them fired up, as Andy had questioned? Although I have no scientific evidence to support this, I actually believe that not only is it possible, but it happens all of the time. I mean, look what David Freese did with the St. Louis Cardinals during last year’s World Series. Freese went from total anonymity to World Series MVP with a sudden Kirk Gibson-like burst of power when his team was down to their final strike, not once but twice. Freese ignited his team (including a struggling Albert Pujols who went on to hit a record-tying three home runs in a single World Series game) and he propelled the Cardinals into the history books in what is arguable one of the greatest World Series of all time.

From total anonymity to World Series MVP, David Freese was unquestionably the catalyst that fired up the St. Louis Cardinals during last year’s World Series. (Photo credit – Ezra Shaw)

And how about the first month of this season (and the first month of the 2011 season for that matter) when Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier were trading home runs and RBIs like two prize fighters exchanging blows? It was epic and it happened two years in a row.

Whether or not Kemp’s solo home run in the second inning of Sunday’s game is going to be the catalyst that will ignite the rest of his team and ultimately bring a Division (or Wild Card) title to the Dodgers remains to be seen; but for the moment, it certainly has the Dodgers finally headed in the right direction.

As they say, winning builds confidence… and vice versa.