Washington Nationals first baseman Ryan Zimmerman was named April’s National League Player of the Month on Wednesday.
This is the first time in 13 seasons, all with the Nationals, in which Zimmerman receives such honor.
In April, Zimmerman led the majors in hits (37), RBIs (29), batting average (.420), slugging percentage (.886), OPS (1,345), extrabase hits (19), and homers (tied with 11).
On Saturday, Zimmerman hit a 470-yard run to tie Manny Machado with the longest home run of the year and the longest in Nationals Park, according to Statcast data. The infielder also ended the month with a seven-game streak in which he had at least an extra-base hit. That streak extended to May with a double on Tuesday. This is the first time Zimmerman has earned a Player of the Month award.
Zimmerman was named National League Player of the Week for the period ending April 30. It was the fourth time Zimmerman received the weekly honor and his first since July 2012.
In the American League, Angels center fielder Mike Trout was named the Player of the Month for April having the best opening month of his five-year major league career. The 25-year-old outfielder batted .364 with seven homers and 18 RBIs, along with an OPS of 1.151, all of them best marks for the A.L in April.
Trout also ended the month with a 14-game hitting streak, including seven multi-hit games in that period. Trout recorded a total of 11 appearances with more than one hit in 27 games.
Trout had his best game against the Texas Rangers on Friday when he went 4-3 with a home run and 2 RBIs in a 6-3 victory. However, one of his most dramatic hits of the month came against the Oakland A’s on April 25, when he hit a solo homer in the bottom of the ninth to send the game to extra innings, before the Angels won 2-1 in 11 innings.
This marks the fourth time that Trout is chosen as Player of the Month in the American League.
