Red-hot Kemp, Encarnacion earn Player of the Week honors

Matt Kemp, the resurgent Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder, was named National League Player of the Week on Monday for the first time since 2014, riding a sensational seven-game stretch to the sixth such honor of his career.

Kemp, who leads his league in batting average (.344) this season, went 9-for-21 (.429) with three home runs, two doubles, and one walk last week, managing the second-highest OPS (1.411) among NL hitters over that span.

"Matt's really growing," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told MLB.com's Chad Thornburg last week. "You see his at-bat quality. He's always been a guy that can drive in runs and get a hit and slug a little bit, but to take the walk, stay out of the double play, stay on a slider down and away and use the whole field, I haven't seen that consistently, even at his best. There's a lot of good things going on with Matt."

In the American League, meanwhile, Cleveland Indians slugger Edwin Encarnacion took home Player of the Week honors following a major home run binge.

Last week, the three-time All-Star went deep five times in seven games, slashing .407/.448/1.037 to raise his season OPS to .834 through 53 contests. On account of his recent outburst, Encarnacion sits just three homers back of Mike Trout and J.D. Martinez, who remain tied for the MLB lead at 19.