The Washington Nationals retired the No. 11 jersey of their former third and first baseman Ryan Zimmerman at the ceremony held before the game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. on Saturday.

"The unique ... story of my career is I was here from the very beginning," Zimmerman said at the press conference when he was introduced as the Nationals' special adviser for baseball and business options. "And it's just sort of being lucky to be here in the first year and then staying here and being able to grow – with the fan base, with the organization. ... So I think that's what makes me a little bit different, a little bit special. It's nothing that I did; I was just here."

The Nationals relocated from Montreal, Canada to Washington, D.C. in 2005 and Zimmerman was the first player they drafted. Having made 1,799 appearances for the team, he is the franchise history leader in hits (1,846), home runs (284), RBIs (1,061), game-ending homers (11) and other stats.

Zimmerman was a two-time National League (NL) All-Star, won the Silver Slugger Award twice and the Gold Glove Award once. In 2019, he helped the Nationals defeat the Houston Astros 4-3 in the World Series to win their first title. That's why he was called "Mr. National."

"He was that very subdued leader," Nationals manager Dave Martinez said. "He didn't say much, but when he spoke, everybody listened. ... He'd do it very discreetly, but his message would get across. That's who Ryan is."

"I'll remember just the way Zim was on the field, away from the field. He was so in tune with the community, as well. Never took the game for granted. Just a lot of fun to see him get honored this way. He's Mr. National. Everybody knows it," Phillies six-time All-Star rightfielder Bryce Harper said of Zimmerman. They were teammates between 2012 and 2018.

Zimmerman wore No. 1 when he was a kid to honor his favorite basketball player Anthony Hardaway. His number became No. 11 when he became a professional baseball player. "They gave me 11, just by chance. I wasn't going to ask for anything as a freshman in college, so I just was like, 'All right. Well, that, that's kind of cool. I used to be 1, now I'm 11.' So super boring story, but that's how it is," he said.