Kent, of course, sets the tone for Dodgers

At the risk of destroying the guy’s image, Jeff Kent is human.

He would prefer you to think of him as a monster, unapproachable, or just not think about him at all.

But he’s such a phony. He hits a home run in the first inning of the first game of the season for the Dodgers, the fifth time in his career he has hit a home run on opening day, and he’s met at home plate by Matt Kemp.

A year ago they might’ve come to blows, the cocky youngster and snarling old man standing in the same ZIP Code, but for a while there Monday afternoon it appeared as if they were dating, hugging each other like they really cared for each other.

“I learned from last year; you got me,” said Kemp, recalling a moment at the end of last season when he didn’t make a move from the on-deck circle to congratulate a teammate on hitting a home run. “I’m going to make sure I’m standing at home plate every time this year.”

The love fest over, Kent began to jog back to the dugout, raising a clenched fist with almost a hint of emotion to the fans sitting behind the plate -- his mother, his father, his wife and four children. The old softy.

“I didn’t raise my arm very high,” he said, the marshmallow still trying to be crusty.

When we last heard from Kent & Co., they were sparring, the young players immature in their performance and preparation, and Kent, the meanie and curmudgeon, calling them out.

The Dodgers changed managers, the Giants came to town and everybody loves everybody, the Dodgers now maybe going undefeated this season.

SOME THINGS have changed, but not Kent. He offered no regrets about last season, maintaining as he always has that the game should be played a certain way.

In fact, Monday was quintessential Jeff Kent. He missed most of spring training because of a hamstring injury but pushed himself the last three days to prepare and show Joe Torre he belonged in the lineup rather than on the disabled list.

And with everyone talking about the arrival of Torre and all the young players, the oldest Dodger of them all stepped to the plate and made sure he only had to jog around the bases to get the job done.

“That’s why I wanted to play,” said Kent, who leads all active players with 18 RBIs on opening day. “This is what I do. It’s time to start the season, and I want to help my team win. I don’t want to hinder them in any way, so I wanted to make sure I was ready to go.”

It says so much about Kent and his businesslike approach to the game, that with the fanfare and distraction that opening day offers, he does his best work.

“I don’t get overwhelmed with everything that’s going on,” he said, the pro going about his work in a professional way, and now hoping it might rub off on others.

“I hope these young players know that I want them to succeed,” said Kent, who was two for three before being ordered by Torre to take the rest of the day off. “I know I’m a little rough around the edges . . . “

Yeah, rough around the edges like a cactus, his reputation of being a jerk pretty well accepted as fact around the league, a job Kent considers well done, which really is a contradiction.

He wants his young teammates to learn from him, like they’re supposed to be eager to approach a hungry alligator.

“There has a been a lot of turnaround in this organization in my four years here and a lot of players don’t know who I am,” he said, but they sure have heard of his reputation. “Am I unapproachable? Absolutely not.

“Anyone who has approached me knows I’m going to help them as much as I can. It’s only the players who don’t approach who think I’m unapproachable.”

It works much the same way for the media, most reporters reluctant to talk to him unless someone else has started the conversation. But those who have gotten to know him find him to be the most engaging and informative quote in the room.

Just keep in mind, the alligator on occasion will snap.

“Maybe I’ve changed a little, but the core of who I am hasn’t changed,” Kent said. “I want to win. Now stop talking to me, and go write what you want to write anyway.”

Yeah, he’s so mean.

KENT SAID he was signing papers the other day for a new motorcycle shop and it was the first time in his life he had to write down that he was 40 years old. “I paused,” he said, obviously every act becoming a chore for the old man now.

THE HIGHLIGHT of pregame ceremonies was the B-1 flyover, drowning out the saxophonist playing the national anthem.

It’s opening day, Los Angeles, and they can’t find a talented singer to belt out the traditional song with maybe everyone joining in? True story -- I hear the Dodgers have a violinist scheduled to do the national anthem tonight. Wake me when it’s over.

ENOUGH ALREADY with Brooklyn, who cares where the Dodgers came from? -- half the names of the players unrecognizable, and it’s a darn shame you have to celebrate a 50th anniversary because the last 20 years have been such a waste.

The pregame ceremony lacked legitimacy when Jose Lima failed to make an appearance, the winner of the Dodgers’ only playoff victory since 1988.

HUNDREDS OF folks from Western Kentucky e-mailed to say they were unhappy because someone pointed out they have a pregnant Elmo for a mascot.

“I take great offense to your article about Western Kentucky,” wrote one fan. “Somebody must like our pregnant Elmo because it has been a nominee in the mascot challenge and has made several appearances on ESPN commercials.”

It’s pretty obvious WKU’s Elmo gets around.

TODAY’S LAST word comes in e-mail from Emily Brooks:

“Western Kentucky was the only school of 65 to have a 100% graduation rate!”

Then they were probably smart enough to know they weren’t in the Bruins’ same league.

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T.J. Simers can be reached at t.j.simers@latimes.com. To read previous columns by Simers, go to latimes.com/simers.