Cavaliers Now

Ryan Zimmerman Officially Retires from Baseball

Mr. National officially hangs up his cleats

Matt Newton

Ryan Zimmerman has officially retired from baseball. 

In an announcement released through CAA Baseball on Tuesday afternoon, Zimmerman made it official with a heartfelt letter addressed to Washington D.C and signed "Employee No. 11." 

"When we first met I was a 20-year-old kid fresh out of the University of Virginia - the very first player ever selected by the Washington Nationals in the 2005 draft," Zimmerman wrote. "I had no idea how unbelievable the next 17 years of my life were going to be." 

Zimmerman retires as the Washington Nationals franchise leader in total games played, home runs, runs scored, hits, RBIs, and total bases. He was a two-time MLB All-Star (2009 and 2017), won the NL Gold Glove in 2009 and the NL Silver Slugger in 2009 and 2010. Zimmerman was also the MLB Players Choice NL Comeback Player of the Year in 2017 and was presented with the 2011 Lou Gehrig Memorial Award, given to "the Major League Baseball player who both on and off the field best exemplifies the character of Lou Gehrig."

Zimmerman played a pivotal role in the 2019 postseason run that ended with the Nationals winning their first ever World Series title. In his first career World Series at-bat in Game 1, Zimmerman hit the first World Series home run in the history of the franchise. The Nationals took down the Houston Astros in seven games to win the title.

Before his decorated professional career, Zimmerman had perhaps the best collegiate career of any player in the history of the Virginia baseball program. Zimmerman, who played high school baseball in Virginia Beach, committed to UVA, where he was a star third baseman from 2003 to 2005. Named to the All-ACC First Team in 2004 and the All-ACC Second Team in 2005, Zimmerman set a UVA single-season record for hits with 90 in 2004 and then broke that record again with 92 hits in 2005. Phil Gosselin now holds that record with 100 hits in the 2010 season and Zimmerman’s record is third-best all-time. Zimmerman is also fifth in the UVA record books in career batting average with .355 and eighth in career hits with 250. In 2018, Zimmerman was inducted into the Virginia Baseball Hall of Fame.

The Washington Nationals selected Zimmerman with the fourth overall pick in the 2005 MLB Draft, making him the highest drafted Cavalier ever at the time (Danny Hultzen was taken second overall by the Mariners in 2011). Following the draft, Zimmerman expressed excitement about the opportunity to play professional baseball near his home. “The Washington Nationals are as close as you can get to my hometown and I’m very excited to be a part of their organization,” Zimmerman said at the time. 

17 years later, Zimmerman officially concludes a legendary professional baseball career. 

Congratulations, Ryan Zimmerman. 

See more Virginia sports news and content: Virginia Cavaliers on Sports Illustrated

See more Virginia baseball news and content: Virginia Baseball on Sports Illustrated

Read more from Cavaliers Now

Kyle Teel Named to Golden Spikes Award Watch List

Virginia Can’t Buy a Three, Falls at Virginia Tech 62-53

Jayden Gardner Named ACC Men's Basketball Player of the Week

Virginia Receives Four Votes in Latest AP Top 25 Poll

UVA Swim & Dive Head Coach Todd DeSorbo to Coach Team USA at 2022 FINA World Championships

UVA Softball Goes 2-3 in Season-Opening Road Trip

Former UVA QB Bryce Perkins and the Los Angeles Rams Win Super Bowl LVI

No. 11 UVA Women's Lacrosse Uses Big Second Half to Rout Cal 18-5

No. 1 Virginia Survives Another Close Matchup with High Point, 11-10

Published
Matt Newton
MATT NEWTON

Matt launched Virginia Cavaliers On SI in August of 2021 and has since served as the site's publisher and managing editor, covering all 23 NCAA Division I sports teams at the University of Virginia. He is from Downingtown, Pennsylvania and graduated from UVA in May of 2021.

Home/Baseball