Washington Nationals: Ranking The First Basemen Of The 2017 NL East

4. Ryan Zimmerman (WSH)

2016 stats: .218/.272/.370, 15 home runs, 46 RBI’s in 115 games

Last season, Zimmerman hit .218/.272/.370 with 15 home-runs and 46 RBIs in 115 games played. He also had a fielding percentage of 99.6% with four errors.

It was another injury plagued campaign for Ryan Zimmerman in 2016. There were hopes before the season that the Washington Nationals would return to the playoffs because of Ryan Zimmerman but at times they succeed despite him.

2017 is another extremely important year for Zimmerman. He is entering the fourth year of his six year contract that he signed for the 2014-2019 seasons with a team option for 2020. His contract grants him 14 million dollars in 2017. Since signing this contract Zimmerman has not lived up to the expectations.

Despite having the worst offensive campaign of his career I decided to put Zimmerman fourth on this list for a couple reasons. The first is experience. 2017 will be Zimmerman’s 13th season putting on the Washington Nationals uniform. He has proven in the past that he can perform at all-star level. Zimmerman has also been more than solid on defense since moving across the diamond. He had an impressive .996 fielding percentage last year.

The last reason is more practical. With the emergence of Trea Turner, the return of Anthony Rendon and Jayson Werth, and the acquisition of Adam Eaton, the offensive pressure is relieved. Zimmerman will have plenty of opportunities further down in the lineup and will not have the pressure of hitting number three in a lineup anymore.

Zimmerman has his work cut out for him to break his recent trends. It will be interesting to watch him during spring training and April to see how healthy he is.