Apparently, the Matt Kemp experiment has died a noble death, because Garciaparra is batting in the leadoff spot for the first time since July 15-16, 2002, for Boston at Detroit. According to the Dodgers’ PR staff, he batted there exclusively in 1997 and started out there in ’98 before he was moved down the order to provide pop in the middle (you may recall he had pop in those days). Kemp batted .255 (12 for 47) leading off, albeit with a home run, two doubles, a triple and six walks. He has struck out 32 times in his past 90 plate appearances, not exactly the numbers you look for in a leadoff man. Haven’t seen the rest of the lineup yet.