Most people never had heard of Ryan Zimmerman until he became the fourth overall pick in the 2005 MLB Draft. From then on, he was billed as the face of the Nationals' franchise.

Then-Nationals general manager Jim Bowden had this glowing evaluation of Zimmerman’s on-field skills: “He’s Brooks Robinson, Scott Rolen and Mike Schmidt rolled into one.”

“I thought [Bowden] was crazy. That’s some big company,” said former catcher Brian Schneider, who played with Zimmerman from 2005-07.

Zimmerman, who retired Monday after a 16-year playing career with the Nationals, came close to living up to those comparisons. During his first six years, Zimmerman’s defense was superb at third base until a right shoulder injury forced him to move to first base by 2015. He was fun to watch, especially during his first two years in the league. It seemed like he was always making acrobatic plays at third.

“A lot of kids who played with him at the end of his career have no idea how good of a defensive player he was. He was elite, man,” Schneider said. “He was a lot of fun to watch.”

And what a clutch performer Zimmerman was with the stick. He hit 11 walk-off home runs and retires as the franchise leader in home runs (284), extra-base hits (723), runs (963), hits (1,846) and RBIs (1,061). In 2019, his 15th season with the club, Zimmerman finally received the World Series ring that eluded him in the team’s triumph over the Astros.

When Zimmerman was attending the University of Virginia, there was no indication he would be a slugger. In three years, he combined to hit nine home runs. But upon reaching the big leagues, he blossomed into a power hitter.

“He didn’t hit a lot of home runs in college. He didn’t hit a lot growing up. But he grew up, man. He became a man and the ball just jumped off his bat,” Schneider said. “I was impressed with with his power, how hard he worked, how strong he got. It made him that much more of a threat at the plate.”

Zimmerman was more than just the greatest player in Nationals history. He held the same demeanor throughout his career. He was always calm, especially during the losing years from 2006-11. He always said the Nats were headed into the right direction because general manager Mike Rizzo was making the right moves to improve the team.

Cubs third-base coach Willie Harris called Zimmerman the best teammate he ever had during his 12 years in the Major Leagues. Why? Zimmerman displayed great leadership and treated every teammate with respect.

Zimmerman and Harris played together from 2008-10. Harris said he and Zimmerman became tight after the latter found out that Harris’ sister had multiple sclerosis (MS), a disease that afflicts Zimmerman mother, Cheryl.

“That's where he and I became close, once I found out about his mom. We were close ever since,” Harris said. “We went out on a boat ride one night. We got a lot closer. Most of the guys [on the Nationals] were there and it was a blast.

“When I was managing for Double-A Richmond in 2018 [in the Giants’ system], Ryan came in on a rehab assignment with Double-A Harrisburg. He sent me one of the nicest gifts over to the locker room. I will never tell what it was, but I was very appreciative. Just by that gift, I knew he remembered me personally. He is just a genuine guy; humble, down to earth, just an awesome human being.”

Numerous injury-plagued seasons likely will prevent Zimmerman from reaching the Hall of Fame, but his name will be in the Ring of Honor at Nationals Park, located on the right-field façade near the foul pole. Zimmerman’s name will be next to Jackie Robinson, Frank Howard and former Nats manager Frank Robinson, who was Zimmerman’s first Major League manager.

“Seventeen years later, you could say, [the Nationals] had a successful Draft pick,” former teammate Jayson Werth said about Zimmerman. “You build your franchise on him.”