Time to bench Zimmerman?

What do you think of Zimmerman? I haven’t seen much production from him and have Mark DeRosa on the bench. Should I bench Zimmerman for a while? Or platoon DeRosa versus LHP and Zimmerman vs RHP?


Thanks fantasy baseball gurus, 

Aaron

Aaron,

Benching Ryan Zimmerman in favor of Mark DeRosa is like

The Nationals offense has been weakened drastically by the losses of Alfonso Soriano and Nick Johnson. With less protection, Ryan Zimmerman sees fewer attractive pitches to hit, leading him to swing at balls outside of the strike zone (0.30 BB/K ratio). Despite his April struggles, Zimmerman remains a special talent, one who’s shown the ability to adjust at every level. He’s a good bet to adapt, and bounce back, though probably not at the high level many had hoped for.

With that said, benching Zimmerman in favor of DeRosa, or platooning the two, for “a while” would be like wearing flamboyant 1980s clothing simply because it came back in style: for a while you may look cool, but sooner or later, you’re bound to feel embarrassed.

Only 22 years old, Zimmerman may be a victim of high expectations, but even in his worst season, he’s more productive than DeRosa.

Ride out Zimmerman’s slump.

– Alex Cushing