Ryan Zimmerman had his number retired by the Washington Nationals prior to Saturday’s game against the Philadelphia Phillies and drinks were on him.
Nationals fans attending Saturday’s game received a card saying Zimmerman was buying their first beer before or after his jersey retirement ceremony. The promotion was taking place at The Salt Line, a restaurant across the street from Nationals Park. Zimmerman, of course, is an investor in The Salt Line.
Nationals Park has a capacity of 41,313 and was sold out on Saturday. That’s a lot of potential beers for Zimmerman to buy.
Zimmerman’s No. 11 is the first number in Nationals history to be retired since the franchise moved from Montreal to Washington in 2005. He was selected with the No. 4 pick in the 2005 draft. He played all 16 of his major league seasons with the Nationals.
The 37-year-old infielder officially retired in February as the franchise leader in most statistical categories. A two-time All-Star, Zimmerman ranks first in franchise history in home runs (284), RBIs (1,061), hits (1,846), doubles (417) and games played (1,799). He also ranks second in walks (646) and 11th in batting average (.277).
Zimmerman was part of the 2019 Nationals team that won the franchise’s first World Series title. He hit the team’s first World Series home run during a 5-4 win in Game 1, which happened to be his first World Series at-bat.
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