Is it time for Matt Kemp to DH full-time?

Colorado Rockies morning after: Give Matt Kemp the DH job in Denver | RoxPile

Matt Kemp has an OPS of 1.215.

Mark McGwire hit 70 home runs in 1998, with an OPS of 1.222.

Kemp’s tenure with the Rockies is an extremely small sample, but a .353/.450/.765 slash thus far suggests Colorado got him as a steal. His track record within the division has picked up where Rockies fans remember it against them: ”Finally, Kemp can terrorize teams in the National League West and not have that list include Colorado.”

We shouldn’t get too carried away with small sample sizes—but perhaps we can get a little excited.

Kevin Henry of RoxPile breaks down the finer details of Kemp as a full-time DH, suggesting he can do more than simply start against left-handed arms. Kemp was “in [Saturday’s] game as the Colorado DH because San Diego started southpaw Joey Lucchesi.” After the Padres starter was chased in the 2nd inning, Kemp did his “biggest damage of the night against a right-hander.”

Kemp followed up his Saturday performance with a 2-for-4 showing on Sunday. He blasted a home run in the 4th off starter Zach Davies, a right-hander.

His 1-for-4 showing on Monday night featured three strikeouts, however. His hit was against Wandy Peralta, a left-hander.

It will be interesting to monitor Kemp’s future work and the handedness of each pitcher he faces. A few more games could paint a clearer picture on what manager Bud Black elects to write on the lineup card, and whether Kemp’s OPS will remain in the stratosphere.

Thomas Harding’s column on Sunday: “Being [in Colorado], you don’t really have to swing as hard,” Kemp said. “You square the ball up and great things can happen—big outfield, a lot of grass out there and the ball can go a little bit.”

Giants takeaways: What you might have missed in 7-6 loss to Rockies | Yahoo! Sports

Giants writer Alex Pavlovic breaks down some finer details of San Francisco’s efforts on Monday night. He addresses how Johnny Cueto was showing well last night until Nolan Arenado cleared the yard. Rookie Chadwick Tromp has seen some firepower of his own. The Giants have hit some “long homers” this year and did so again on Monday night, but Colorado’s seven-run offensive performance kept them atop the NL West standings by a full game.

(Your National League West division leading Colorado Rockies, ladies and gentleman.)

Chadwick Tromp and Mike Yastrzemski reason as the Giants to watch as the series turns to games two, three and four. Their starting pitchers could be a little unexpected, however; the Giants haven’t announced a starter for the remainder of this week.

Gausman: ‘No problem’ with nebulous role | ESPN

It has been common for new Giants manager Gabe Kapler to announce his starting pitchers extremely late. “It’s a little bit of gamesmanship, we’ll call it,” says Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “To each their own.”

If San Francisco stays true to their recent five-man rotation, it will be right-handed Colorado native Kevin Gausman making the start. He has yet to pitch at Coors Field as a big leaguer. Gausman utilizes a four-seam and split-finger mix, and allowed three earned runs over 4 ¹⁄₃ innings last Thursday. He has also appeared out of the bullpen this year; given Kapler’s unorthodox approach to announcing starters, we could end up seeing Gausman in relief.

The Rockies will send Opening Day starter Germán Márquez back to the mound for his first home start of the year. He has allowed two earned runs over 11 ²⁄₃ innings pitched, working with his fastball/slider/curveball combo. Márquez’s road ahead features two teams—the Giants and Mariners—that are projected by FanGraphs to finish last in their respective divisions.

Around the division, the Diamondbacks will send Madison Bumgarner to work against the Astros; his fastball velocity is something to watch for. The Dodgers will send top pitching prospect Dustin May back to the mound against Dinelson Lamet and the Padres.

Report: MLB Cancels ‘Field of Dreams’ Game Between Cardinals and White Sox

Ken Rosenthal tweeted that the cancellation of the Field of Dreams Game is more of a “logistical” problem than it is an issue of positive tests by the Cardinals. Construction on the field, placed right next to the actual Field of Dreams movie site, began last fall.

While schedule disruptions continue to unfold in MLB’s ‘Central’ and ‘East’ pods, the ‘West’ schedule has seen the least amount of interruptions.

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