Matt Kemp is the NL Player of the Week.

Dodgers center fielder Matt Kemp is on pace for 81 home runs, 324 RBIs, 41 stolen bases and a .412 batting average.

That’s what happens when you put up monster numbers in the first four games of the season. And when those games constitute the entire first week of the season, you earn National League Player of the Week honors, as Kemp did Monday.

From the official press release:

In four games last week, Kemp batted .412 (7-for-17) while leading the Majors with six runs scored and tying for the Major League lead with eight RBI and 14 total bases. His two home runs and seven hits were both tied for third among National Leaguers, while his .824 slugging percentage ranked seventh. The Oklahoma native became the first Dodger to have three consecutive multi-hit games to begin a season since Adrian Beltre in 2000. Kemp collected hits in each of the first four games, extending his hitting streak to 16 games dating back to last season. His bat helped the Dodgers to a 3-0 start for the first time since 1999. The 27-year-old led the Dodgers out of the gate, going 2-for-5 with three RBI and a towering two-run homer en route to a 5-3 victory at San Diego’s PETCO Park on Opening Day. On April 6th, 2011 N.L. All-Star went 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored as the Dodgers took the second game of their four-game set at San Diego, 6-0. Kemp notched his third consecutive multi-hit effort on Saturday, going 2-for-4 with two RBI as the Dodgers topped San Diego, 6-5, in 11 innings. Kemp, a sixth round selection in the 2003 First-Year Player Draft, clubbed his second home run of the season in Sunday’s 8-4 loss to the Friars.

Other noteworthy performances last week included Kemp’s Dodger teammates Chad Billingsley (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 8.1 IP, 11 SO, 1 BB, 3 H) and Andre Ethier (.267, 8 RBI, .733 SLG); Cincinnati’s Jay Bruce (.273, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 3 R), who became the first player in Reds history to homer three times in the first three games of the season, along with Zack Cozart (.545, HR, 2 RBI, 4 R, 2 2B) and Johnny Cueto (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 7.0 IP, 4 SO); Carlos Beltran (.389, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 7 H), David Freese (.421, HR, 6 RBI) and Rafael Furcal (.526, 10 H, 3 R, 2 SB) of the St. Louis Cardinals; Milwaukee’s Corey Hart (.444, 3 HR, 4 RBI, 1.556 SLG) and Zack Greinke (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 7.0 IP, 7 SO); Frank Francisco (0.00 ERA, 3 SV, 3.0 IP, 4 SO) and David Wright (.667, 6 H, HR, 3 RBI) of the New York Mets; Philadelphia’s Roy Halladay (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 8.0 IP, 5 SO); San Diego’s Clayton Richard (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 7.0 IP, 3 SO); and San Francisco’s Pablo Sandoval (.417, HR, 4 RBI, .500 OBP).

In recognition of his National League Player of the Week Award, Matt Kemp will be awarded a watch courtesy of Game Time, the leader in licensed sports watches, available at MLB.com.

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About J.P. Hoornstra

J.P. Hoornstra covers the Dodgers, Angels and Major League Baseball for the Orange County Register, Los Angeles Daily News, Long Beach Press-Telegram, Torrance Daily Breeze, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Pasadena Star-News, San Bernardino Sun, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, Whittier Daily News and Redlands Daily Facts. Before taking the beat in 2012, J.P. covered the NHL for four years. UCLA gave him a degree once upon a time; when he graduated on schedule, he missed getting Arnold Schwarzenegger's autograph on his diploma by five months.