Associated Press

RYAN ZIMMERMAN

Washington Nationals third baseman

• College: Virginia, where he hit .355 with 140 RBIs in three seasons.
• Drafted: first round in 2005 (fourth overall pick)
• Hometown: Virginia Beach
• Age: 22
• This season: batting .264 with 18 homers and 64 RBIs; ranks fifth in the majors with 484 at-bats.
• Last season: hit .287 with 20 homers and 110 RBIs; had 47 doubles, tying him for second on the all-time rookie list; led majors with 64 hits with runners in scoring position; finished second in NL Rookie of the Year voting.

NEW YORK -- Last season, Ryan Zimmerman was one of the best rookies in the National League.

So it's not too surprising that this season, the former Virginia standout isn't seeing as many pitches to his liking.

Zimmerman is batting .264 for the Washington Nationals, down from .287 last year.

"I'm still real young, and there's a lot of things you have to learn, especially now that you have one good year and people kind of know who you are," the third baseman said two weeks ago after a loss to the New York Mets at Shea Stadium. "In certain situations, they might not give you pitches to hit like they would last year.

"They don't want to let me beat them. They'll let other people in the lineup beat them before they let me beat them. ... They're kind of pitching me a little bit tougher. Year 2 has definitely been a lot harder than the first year."

Zimmerman, 22, is trying to be more patient at the plate. He had 10 walks in July, seven more than he had in June.

"That's all part of growing up and learning the game," said Zimmerman, who bats third in the Nationals' order. "That's what this year has done for me -- I think I've grown up a lot, learned a lot."

"I'm trying to become a little bit more selective and maybe not swing at their pitch all the time."

Zimmerman's approach has begun to pay off. He was batting just .245 entering last month but hit .311 in July to raise his average to .260 at month's end. He is hitting .296 in August (through 13 games).

"I've been doing a lot better because I've been taking my walks," he said.

The Virginia Beach, Va., native had 20 home runs, 47 doubles and 110 RBIs last year, when he became only the third National League rookie in a 53-year span to drive in at least 100 runs. This year, he has 18 homers and 64 RBIs .

Zimmerman, who has started every game for the Nationals this season, said he has learned more this year than he even did as rookie.

"You've got to keep learning and you've got to keep paying attention, even if you're good and you think you're the best on your team," he said. "There's always someone who's better. You've got to learn and adapt, and don't ever be afraid to try new things."

Zimmerman was drafted two years ago; he was a first-round pick after his junior season at UVa. He made his major-league debut later that same year, after stops at Single-A Savannah and Double-A Harrisburg. Last season, in his first full year in the bigs, he was the runner-up to Hanley Ramirez in the NL Rookie of the Year voting.

"He's a great player," Mets pitcher Tom Glavine said. "For a young kid, he certainly has burst onto the scene very quickly. You don't see too many guys that ... get to the big leagues as quick as he did and have the success that he's had, but he continues to make adjustments and continues to play well.

"It's hard on a team like theirs where he's kind of the focal point of the lineup and the guy that everybody looks at to try to not beat you. That's a tough thing to do, ... but he seems to have adjusted to that pretty well."

Zimmerman isn't a one-dimensional player. His .965 fielding percentage last year tied for tops among NL third basemen. His percentage is .954 this year through Monday.

"I take pride in my defense," he said. "I work very hard at it. ... I just try every game to do something positive to help the team win, whether it's walk or score a run or make a defensive play."

"He goes out there every day and plays the game right," Nationals first baseman Nick Johnson said. "He plays it hard."

Zimmerman hit .393 with six homers and 59 RBIs for UVa in 2005, helping the Cavaliers make the NCAA tournament for the second straight season. Just three months after being drafted, he was a September call-up by the Nationals, then in their first season in Washington.

"College programs are advanced nowadays," Zimmerman said. "You play against good competition. You have really good coaches. I was in the right place at the right time, which is what it takes sometimes to get here quickly. When you have an opportunity, you have to take advantage of it.

"I was always pretty smart about the game. I just needed to mature a little bit and grow up some, and three years of college helped me do that a lot."

Zimmerman lives in Arlington during the season but returns home to Virginia Beach for part of his offseason. He feels fortunate to play in Washington.

"It's fun for me because a lot of my buddies that I went to school with live up [in the D.C. area] now," he said.

The Nationals are in last place in the National League East at 54-65, but Zimmerman keeps his competitive focus.

"As much as you might not be a contender, the other team might be. You want to make them lose more, just for that reason," he said.

Although he is no longer a rookie, playing in the majors is still exciting to Zimmerman.

"I have fun every time I play," he said.