Virginia baseball to retire Ryan Zimmerman’s No. 11 jersey

The Washington Nationals aren’t the only baseball team retiring Ryan Zimmerman’s No. 11 jersey this spring.

The University of Virginia baseball team will officially retire Zimmerman’s number during a game later this month, the program announced Tuesday. 

Zimmerman will be in attendance for the ceremony on April 30 and will throw out the first pitch before Virginia takes on Virginia Tech. All fans at the game will receive a Zimmerman shirsey, while the first 500 will also get a bobblehead of Zimmerman in Virginia garb. 

“Ryan Zimmerman embodies everything it means to be a Virginia baseball player,” Virginia coach Brian O’Connor said in a press release. “He’s all class in everything he does, the way he played the game on the field, his leadership and professionalism makes him special.”

👕 Ryan Zimmerman Day ⚾️

🗓April 30 | 📍 Disharoon Park

🔷 Free Zimmerman T-Shirt Jersey to 𝗔𝗟𝗟 Fans
🔶 Zimmerman Bobbleheads to first 500 fans
🔷 No. 1️⃣1️⃣ to be retired in pregame ceremony!

More Details 👇

— Virginia Baseball (@UVABaseball) April 20, 2022

Zimmerman played three seasons at Virginia from 2003 to 2005. He ended his time as a Cavalier as the program’s all-time hits leader, although that record has since been broken. He hit .355 at Virginia, amassing 250 hits over three seasons and being named an All-American in 2005. 

About two months after Zimmerman is honored at Virginia, the MLB team he played all 16 of his professional seasons with will retire his jersey as well. The Nationals will celebrate Zimmerman and retire his No. 11 jersey during a two-day celebration at Nationals Park on June 17-18.