SAN FRANCISCO — Veteran Ryan Zimmerman will again come off the bench for the Washington Nationals on Monday in Game 3 of the National League Division Series, if he enters the game at all.
Manager Matt Williams had previously said he would consider starting Zimmerman, who missed 99 games this season with a fractured thumb and strained right hamstring, against left-hander Madison Bumgarner. Zimmerman is 3 for 17 with one double and one home run against Bumgarner in his career.
“There will be certainly an opportunity for him, we hope, during the course of the game to come up with a big at-bat for us,” Williams said. “Zim’s numbers against Bumgarner are not great. Our lefties hit him pretty well. They’ve got some hits and some RBIs and some homers against him, so that’s the reason. Nothing in particular.”
Instead, Williams decided to stick with the same lineup he has used for much of the final month of the regular season, keeping all three of his lefties in the order against Bumgarner.
Center fielder Denard Span, who has yet to record a hit in the postseason, is 1 for 8 in his career against Bumgarner with two strikeouts and one RBI. First baseman Adam LaRoche, who hit .204 against left-handers this season, is 6 for 21 with three doubles and eight strikeouts. Left fielder Bryce Harper is 3 for 9 with a homer.
“We have got here by doing things a certain way, and to change things up is one option,” Williams said. “But we trust our guys. We have faith in our guys. And offensively, it hasn’t happened the first two games, but that doesn’t mean it can’t happen today.
Williams also said it was important to field the best possible defense behind starter Doug Fister, who induces a lot of grounders and weak contact in the infield. The rookie manager said Zimmerman’s hamstring was not a factor.
“There’s a lot of things that go into it, without getting into specifics,” Williams said. “You know, it’s important for us to play good defense behind Doug and be defensively sound in that regard. The fact that our left-handed hitters have some history and have some success here — Rochey is hitting .286, Bryce is hitting .333 off [Bumgarner]. There’s lot of things that go in it, but [Zimmerman’s] health is not a factor.”
The full lineups for Monday’s game are below:
Washington Nationals
1. CF Denard Span
2. 3B Anthony Rendon
3. RF Jayson Werth
4. 1B Adam LaRoche
5. SS Ian Desmond
6. LF Bryce Harper
7. C Wilson Ramos
8. 2B Asdrubal Cabrera
9. RHP Doug Fister
San Francisco Giants
1. CF Gregor Blanco
2. 2B Joe Panik
3. C Buster Posey
4. 3B Pablo Sandoval
5. RF Hunter Pence
6. 1B Brandon Belt
7. SS Brandon Crawford
8. LF Travis Ishikawa
9. LHP Madison Bumgarner
• Tom Schad can be reached at tschad@washingtontimes.com.
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