Zimmerman Agrees to Extension

[catman]

5-years, $45M. Here is a story: Nationals Journal - Zimmerman, Nationals Agree To Five-Year, $45 Million Deal

[missionhockey21]

I know Zimmerman is still young, but I really do not think he'll ever hit the ceiling with his bat that many expected him to. Don't get me wrong, he'll be that .500+ OPS (edit: .500+ SLG%) bat. His walk to plate appearance number has declined for a few seasons now and I just do not see the progression in his game to show that he'll be much more than what he is now. He is young and he will get better, but not that much more.

[ljshorty89]

Umm, Mission, I hope his OPS is over .500. If it's not, he's a useless pile of crap.

But, I agree. I think Zimmerman has a lot of talent, and had an excellent rookie year(with a good cup of tea the year prior), but he has regressed every year since, he has a low OBP, a diminishing # of HR each year, very few BB, and he just hasn't made any adjustments. He may figure it out and become a superstar, but until he starts adjusting to MLB pitching, I don't see it happening.

[missionhockey21]

I meant SLG%. I am not firing on all cylinders today. I know he had injury trouble last year, but he just hasn't made the leap to a next level to make me think that he has much more development to reach.

[cjkalt]

That seems like a lot of money for a mid-tier 3B, young or not

[ljshorty89]

Defensively Zimmerman is excellent. Offensively, he's shown talent. He has the potential to be an UPPER UPPER Tier 3B, but he hasn't gotten there yet. The money COULD end up being worth it, but I see no reason to buy into the fact that it will(at least not yet).

[missionhockey21]

Yep and I don't see why they did not wait to see if he shows growth this year or not. Unless he went and had an Albert Pujols type of season, considering what other young guys sign to when getting their first 1-2 years of FA bought out, I can't see the asking price really being any higher but the peace of mind for the Nationals certainly would have been.

[love_that_reefer]

$9 million is a very fair price for Zimmerman. He plays good defense and can hit. Injuries have slowed him the past few years but lets not forget that he has been carrying that Nats offense all by himself as well. What kind of talent has he had around him? Zimmerman has plenty of room to grow and if they ever get any talent around him, he could be in the Arod/David Wright discussions.