Nats third baseman Ryan Zimmerman knows he’s a lucky guy.
“As a professional athlete, we have so many connections and resources that people don’t have,” he told Yeas & Nays, at a private concert for his charity, the zIMS Foundation, at the stadium last week. “If we don’t use those it’s kind of a shame … We’re so lucky to be able to do what we do and get paid as much as we get paid. Every guy should do something to give back because we’re so lucky to do what we do.”
Zimmerman started zIMS in 2006, which supports research and programs for multiple sclerosis, which his mother was diagnosed with when he was 11. Cheryl Zimmerman and her husband Keith joined their son at the stadium along with his fiancee, Heather Downen, two dozen Nats players and 750 guests for a Guster performance. The event raised more than $200,000.
Zimmerman’s parents are just happy their kid is having a decent season. “It’s wonderful,” said Keith. “Just like Ryan suffers through the bad times, his parents suffer too, as far as watching games.” Right now he and his wife are “on top of the world.”
