Change in batting stance leads to turnaround for Matt Kemp

In case you haven't noticed, Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp has been on a pretty good offensive run the last few weeks. He is batting .408 with a .776 slugging percentage, 1.258 OPS, five home runs and 14 RBI in his last 13 games.

A change in Kemp's batting stance has led to the offensive surge, per The Orange County Register.

"He actually has straightened his stance," assistant hitting coach John Valentin said. "It used to be locked. What that created was a difficulty to have the freedom to stay through the baseball. This offers a clear path to hit balls in and away."

For most of Kemp's career, including the start to this season, he has been hunched over a bit at the plate. Now, he is standing more upright. Valentin said Kemp's struggles at the plate finally led to the change in batting stance.

"We brought it up to him a long time ago. But him being such an accomplished player, he had to want to do it," Valentin said. "When he came back, he wasn’t the same player, because of his injuries. He’s battled that way, and he kept playing." But the stance, for me, was not allowing him to be better."