Playing in possibly his final game as part of the Washington Nationals organization, Ryan Zimmerman said his goodbyes to the DC crowd Sunday. The Nationals were playing in their season finale against the Boston Red Sox.
Zimmerman came back for his 17th season with the Nationals this year mostly as a bench player. With all indications pointing to this being his final year of his career — or at least his final season playing with the Nationals — Zimmerman was inserted in the starting lineup for the final time.
He was greeted by a standing ovation by the fans in Nationals Park as he entered his first at-bat of the game. Zimmerman was moved to tears as he stepped in the batter’s box.
Zimmerman went 0-for-3 on the day with a bases loaded walk in the third inning. After grounding out in the seventh of a 5-5 tie, manager Dave Martinez elected to take Zimmerman out of the game.
That opened up the opportunity for an emotional goodbye. Zimmerman stepped out of the dugout and was met with another standing ovation from fans. This time his Nationals teammates and Red Sox players joined in.
Zimmerman was once again brought to tears after acknowledging his family in the stands. Martinez walked out to hug him, sparking more emotion for a generation of Nats fans.
The 37-year old Zimmerman holds countless records for the only franchise he has ever played for. That includes going back to the team’s existence as the Montreal Expos. He is the Nationals’ all-time leader with 1,799 games played, 1,846 hits, 284 home runs, 417 doubles and 1,061 runs batted in to name a few.
