In A Possible Metaphor For The Dodgers' Season, Matt Kemp Smashed Into The Wall At Full Speed

Matt Kemp has already missed 51 games this year due to injury. But these new look Dodgers opened up the checkbook, stocked the larder, and are attempting to make a playoff surge anchored by a healthy Kemp. Oh look, there's Matt Kemp running directly into a wall, and there's the Dodgers' third straight loss.

Kemp lost track of where he was while trying to run down Jordan Pacheco's fly ball, one that perhaps carried unexpectedly in the thin Colorado air. And boom—wall. The damage was bad, though perhaps not as bad as it could have been. He suffered a bruised knee, a sore jaw, and a gash to his chin that had to be stitched up. (It's not totally clear on the replay, but it looks like the baseball might've bounced off the wall and hit him in the face.) A CAT scan on his jaw came back negative, and he'll have an MRI on the knee later today.

There was insult to injury. Kemp actually stayed in the game, and the very next batter dropped a blooper just out of the diving Kemp's reach. After the loss, Los Angeles finds itself 3.5 games behind the Giants. Yes, there's local panic.