Nationals' Ryan Zimmerman ready to play first base
Ryan Zimmerman said he is fully recovered from a hamstring injury and is ready to play first base for the Washington Nationals next season, Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post reports.
Zimmerman, 30, injured his right hamstring in July and returned in late September before playing the NL Division Series against the San Francisco Giants. Limited by injuries to 61 games, he batted .280 with five home runs and 38 RBIs last season.
After Adam LaRoche signed with the Chicago White Sox, Zimmerman said he is ready to move from third to first base. He has played just five games in his career at first.
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From The Washington Post:
“I like it because I know how nice it is to have a good first baseman,” Zimmerman said of a potential move across the diamond. “I’ve been lucky to play with a couple really good first basemen, being on the other side of the field it’s comforting to know that you have a guy over there where if you get it close, he’s going to help you out a lot, and that’s what I’m going to work to be because I know how nice that makes you feel when you’re an infielder. But that’s going to take a lot of work. Everyone thinks you just go over to first base and kind of hide him there, but it’s a tough position, there’s a lot of things I have to learn, but I’m looking forward to the challenge.”
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Zimmerman has spent his entire 10-year career with the Nationals and has a .286 career batting average with 184 home runs and 710 RBIs.
The Nationals won the NL East by 17 games last season with a 96-66 record. They lost to the Giants in the NLDS in four games.
- Paul Palladino
