Matt Kemp is being saluted for his act of kindness after given a young cancer-stricken fan the shirt off his back.
After making the final out in the L.A. Dodgers latest lost to rival San Francisco, Kemp walks over to the young fan and hands over his game-worn jersey, hat and cleats. “He just kind of looked at me,” Kemp said of Joshua Jones’ stunned but elated reaction.
Soon, the wheelchair bound boy, who’s also unable to speak, can be seen beaming even more as he shows the items off to father, Steve Jones. The two had never met Kemp before and this chance encounter only came about after Kemp was told about the boy’s condition and love for the team’s biggest star by Dodgers coach Tim Wallach.
Before cheerfully walking away, Kemp reaches over the rail to shake the father’s hand, and then the boy's, all the while the boy’s eyes follow his every move. For posterity’s sake, every move is recorded by family friend Tommy Schultz.
"I didn't know that anybody was filming it," Kemp later told ESPN Tuesday afternoon. "I wasn't aware. It's just something I felt probably would have cheered him up a little bit. Help him out a little bit. I just did it. Hopefully that made that kid's day."
All the while Wallach stands to side watching, almost beaming as much as young Joshua.
"As a parent," Wallach said, "you can't even imagine what they're going through. You'd hate to have to imagine what they're going through."
In one simple swing, Matt Kemp’s thus far season to forget, the one in which to date he’s hit just one homer and his high-profile Dodgers are in last place, instantly became perhaps his most memorable
"I just saw a kid there that was a big fan," said Kemp. "Hopefully, God-willing, a miracle happens and he lives for a while. I don’t even know the kid’s name. You have some good stories and some sad stories. God puts them there to remind you."
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