The Washington Nationals will be without star third baseman Ryan Zimmerman for four to six weeks after he fractured his right thumb in a 6-3 loss to the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field on Saturday night.
In the fifth inning, with the Braves leading 4-1, Zimmerman was on second base following a double. Zimmerman dove back to second as Braves starter Alex Wood attempted to pick him off. Zimmerman jammed his right thumb into the base, breaking it. Second-base umpire Paul Nauert called Zimmerman out. Zimmerman stayed on the ground arguing with Nauert about the call. After about a minute had lapsed, Zimmerman slowly got up while looking at his right thumb. Zimmerman walked off the field and was pulled from the game entire due to the injury.
The official announcement is that Zimmerman is being placed on the disabled list as of Sunday. Anthony Rendon is expected to be moved from second base over to third to replace Zimmerman while Danny Espinosa will be brought off the bench to replace Rendon at second.
The Nationals are also expected to recall infielder Zach Walters from Triple-A Syracuse on Sunday. Walters will serve as a backup in the infield as he can play multiple positions.
"It's not our first choice, certainly. The fact that they can play multiple positions is good in times like this," manager Matt Williams said. "You certainly don't want to miss someone like Zim for that amount of time, but it is what it is. There is nothing we can do about it now except play."