Washington Nationals first baseman Ryan Zimmerman has gone on the 15-day disabled list with an unspecified injury.
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Dusty Baker Mum on Zimmerman’s Ailment
Friday, July 8
The Nationals announced the move Friday.
On Thursday, manager Dusty Baker said Zimmerman was out due to a “sore something,” according to the Washington Post‘s Chelsea Janes.
This is a difficult blow for the injury-plagued 31-year-old, especially since he appeared in only 95 games in 2015 and 61 games in 2014. In fact, he hasn’t appeared in at least 150 games in a season since the 2009 campaign, which is one reason he moved to first base from his old position of third base.
When healthy, Zimmerman is still a dangerous offensive player. Thus far, he is batting just .221 with 12 home runs and 38 RBI in 2016.
He posted solid power numbers last season with 16 home runs and 73 RBI, but he hit only .249 with a .308 on-base percentage. Still, he was a force in his prime and was a 2009 All-Star with a .292 batting average, 33 home runs, 106 RBI and a WAR of 7.1, per ESPN.com. He followed that up the next year with a .307 batting average, 25 home runs, 85 RBI and a WAR of 6.0.
He earned Silver Slugger awards in both of those seasons and was a Gold Glove third baseman in 2009.
The hope in the nation’s capital was Zimmerman would bounce back to his old form, but the Nationals can at least turn to Clint Robinson in his absence. Robinson played 126 games last season and hit .272 with 10 home runs and 34 RBI. The fact he picked up critical experience in 2015 will help him fill in for Zimmerman until the starting first baseman returns.
While Robinson can serve as the first baseman for the immediate future, Washington is trying to rebound from a disappointing 2015 and could use Zimmerman’s veteran presence and pop back in the lineup.
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