NATIONALS NOTEBOOK
Zimmerman Is Placed on Disabled List
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Wednesday, June 4, 2008
The Washington Nationals placed third baseman Ryan Zimmerman on the 15-day disabled list for the first time in his two-plus-year major league career yesterday.
Zimmerman, 23, and the Nationals do not know if the small labral tear in his left shoulder will require surgery or how long it will hold him out. The first step in his rehab, as recommended by specialists Tim Kremchek and James Andrews, will be a week of rest and anti-inflammatory medication. Zimmerman will be re-examined afterward.
Zimmerman, the player regarded as most crucial to the team's future and its current leader in home runs and RBI, played in all 162 games last season. He has missed the past seven games with the injury, and he both understands and agrees with the team using caution.
"I think I want to come back a lot quicker," he said. "But I think it's going to be a little bit longer. I don't know weeks or anything like that. It's going to be taken slowly. It's hard for me to do that, but I think they're going to be pretty strict about it. It's tough. But you've got to realize it's better for the long run for the team, for everybody. I'll swallow my pride."
The Nationals are still seeking a second opinion from the Mayo Clinic, and that opinion, along with the re-examination next week, will answer two pressing questions: When can Zimmerman return, and will he need surgery? If he does, Zimmerman hopes to delay it until after the season.
"If I'm going to have to get surgery, if I can get to the point where I can play the rest of the year and be sure that I won't hurt anything, I think that would be the plan that I would go," he said.
Zimmerman became the fifth player from the Nationals' Opening Day lineup to be placed on the disabled list, where 12 players have missed a combined 323 games. Zimmerman's absence, though, may be most troubling, particularly if his return comes slowly.
"Obviously, it's not going to be easy," Manager Manny Acta said. "He's a top defender at third base. And he's our third hitter, our best hitter right now, and the face of this franchise."
The team recalled Kory Casto, who hit .130 in 16 games with Washington last season, from Class AAA Columbus to replace Zimmerman.
