Washington Nationals: Ryan Zimmerman Makes History with Three-Homer Game

Washington Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman made history on Wednesday night, becoming the first National League player to hit three or more homers at Camden Yards.

Zimmerman is just the fourth opposing player to hit three or more homers at Camden Yards. Last season, Josh Hamilton had a four-homer game for the Texas Rangers against the Baltimore Orioles on May 8.

Shortstop Ian Desmond shared his thoughts on Zimmerman's performance, via Bill Ladson of MLB.com:

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"Big players step up when the team needs him," Ian Desmond said about Zimmerman. "I think he understands what's going on with our team. I think he feels inside he needs to carry some of the weight. That's what superstars do. He is definitely that. He has turned it up a notch."

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Despite the big night from Zimmerman, the Nationals unfortunately took the loss.The Orioles battled back on the shoulders of the red-hot slugger, Chris Davis.

Baltimore trailed 6-3 in the seventh before rallying against Jordan Zimmermann, who gave up seven runs and 10 hits in six-plus innings. He came in with a 1.71 ERA and a streak of 15 straight starts allowing three runs or less.

Surprisingly, the Nats hit four home runs without injured slugger Bryce Harper in the lineup. Even more surprisingly, they still managed to lose in the process.

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"It's tough to have a night like that and not be able to celebrate and have fun with it, because we lost," Zimmerman said. "I've been swinging the bat better, and tonight everything came together in one game. Hopefully, we can keep swinging the bats like we have the last few days. We know our pitching is good enough. If we score that many runs, we are going to win more than we lose."

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This is something Washington simply can't afford to do, Zimmerman's impressive performance will ultimately go down as a waste.

But if Zimmerman's recent hot streak is any indication of what's to come, the Nationals could very well put a significant run together going forward.

With Bryce Harper on the mend, Adam LaRoche heating up and Ian Desmond still due to put things together, Washington will soon be threatening the Atlanta Braves for sole possession of first place.

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