Kemp was promoted to Triple-A for the final two weeks of the 2024 campaign. He hit .200 in 45 at-bats, with no home runs, 2 RBIs, and five runs scored in those 13 games. He struck out 11 times, walked five and slugged .578.

Kemp was overmatched. That was enough.

“I was not happy with how I performed the last two-and-a-half weeks of last year,” Kemp said. “That was a little bit of motivation going into the Fall League. I knew that (performance) was not really who I am.

“That was a little bit of the chip on the shoulder to work a little bit harder and more detailed and dive into certain things that weren’t working those couple weeks and kind of figure out why.”

Kemp’s hard work at the plate to start the 2025 season has gotten him on the Phillies’ radar. Entering Thursday night, he was hitting .336 with 10 home runs and 36 RBIs with 30 runs scored in his 34 games with the IronPigs, having a ridiculous OPS of 1.097. Kemp is leading the International League in runs scored and RBI, while being tied for first in home runs. He’s second in the league in OPS.

A completely different player than last season, even though the Phillies’ No. 24-ranked prospect hit in High-A Jersey Shore and Double-A Reading — the reason why he moved up three levels in one season in the first place.

“He’s just a good baseball player. And we don’t say that term lightly,” IronPigs manager Anthony Contreras said. “You hear a lot of people around the game in the Phillies organization call him a ball player. That is kind of the ultimate compliment to a guy.

“He’s gritty. He asks the right questions. He’s trying to get better every single day. He’s doing all the little things a professional is supposed to do.”

So when did everything start to click for Kemp? When did a former undrafted ballplayer start to realize he had a shot at the major leagues?

It started in the 2024 Arizona Fall League. Kemp hit .289 with six home runs and 22 RBI in 15 games, having an OPS of 1.194. The timeless effort of Phillies director of hitting development Edwar Gonzalez and director of player development Luke Martin, who Kemp credits for his improvement, to change up his swing paid dividends.

“All the hard work we were putting in those two years. There was a lot of digging, a lot of uncomfortable days where we made some tweaks and they didn’t really work out,” Kemp said. “Just kind of grinding through swing changes, approach changes, mechanics defensively and offensively. It takes a lot of time for you to build those instincts and kinda just go out and play.

“There’s a lot of repetition. I needed those game reps to catch up a little bit. That was when it started to really click.”

Kemp has put himself on the Phillies’ radar. He could find himself in the major leagues as soon as this summer.

“It’s something that I personally try not to dive into,” Kemp said. “I try to dive into what this day looks like. Try to do the best I can to be where my feet are and be present today. What does today bring? Who are we facing today, and what do we have to do to get a win tonight?”

Kemp made a promise to himself he could play at Triple-A and produce at this level. He lived up to that promise in five weeks. The rest is up to the Phillies.

“(I’m) just kinda silencing that noise and know the Phillies are going to make their moves when they make their moves,” Kemp said. “I don’t have any control of that. Just trying to trust them and that process

“I promised (myself I could play) and I think I’ve shown that.”