Washington Nationals: Hoping Jordan Zimmermann goes out on a high note

Jordan Zimmermann may well be at the end of the line. In fact, prior to getting called up by the Milwaukee Brewers recently, Zimmermann was contemplating retiring. His lone appearance over the weekend didn’t go well, with him surrendering five earned runs in 3.2 innings.

On the heels of a dreadful stint with the Detroit Tigers, being subjected to signing a minor league contract this offseason, then not making the Brewers out of spring training, one has to wonder if the days are numbered for Zimmermann.

He gave Washington Nationals fans a lot of memories, though the Jordan Zimmermann of yesteryear is not the same guy who pitches today.

Were it not for a dozen Brewers players being on the Injured List, Zimmermann may not have gotten his opportunity. Unfortunately, his first time taking the mound for his new team didn’t go as planned. Now as he sits in the Milwaukee bullpen awaiting his future, his former Nationals fans are hoping he gets another opportunity to go out on a high note.

As soon as the wave of Brewers pitchers gets healthy, Zimmermann will be one of the first players dropped from the active roster. He’ll be designated for assignment. No trade will be worked out. If the Brewers had their way, they would option him to Triple-A, keeping him as depth and potential injury replacement. Zimmermann will most likely ask for his release and he’ll retire.

Thirteen years in the league and it’ll end like this.

JZimm deserves much better. He spent seven stellar seasons in DC. He led the league in wins one year. He threw a no-hitter. He tossed 8.2 innings of masterful baseball in a postseason game, only to be removed too early and have the game go awry. Jordan Zimmermann was the popular pitcher before Stephen Strasburg came along. He was the face of the pitching staff before Max Scherzer was signed.

We held out hope Zimmermann would find his way back to Washington in the offseason, after a treacherous tenure in Detroit. We knew it wasn’t in the best interest of the team, though we wanted to see our old friend again. Get him back in the comfort of home and put him in the environment he was developed in.

As Zimmermann sits in the bullpen and waits, we wait with him. We hope he gets called into a game and pitches a scoreless inning, finishing off a 1-2-3 frame with a strikeout. Then when his turn is up, he can walk away on a positive note.