Ryan Zimmerman takes to the disabled list with a bad hamstring. That gives an opening for Anthony Rendon to show what he can do in the majors:

The 22-year-old Rendon was a first-round draft pick in 2011. He is hitting .292 with two homers and seven RBIs at Harrisburg. Johnson said he expected Rendon would start in Zimmerman’s place.

You would think after all these years of sabermetrics permeating baseball the AP could quote more than the triple crown batting stats. Rendon owns a .462 OBP and a .500 slugging percentage at AA this season. In his 57 minor league games he’s batting .249, but with a .391 OBP and a .492 slugging percentage. Of his 45 minor league hits, 24 have gone for extra bases. He joins the Natoinals at seasonal age 23, playing mostly third base, but with a game or two at second and short. The fact that the teams are willing to move him to those positions indicates he’s likely a good defender at third.

So what happens if he comes up and hits? Ryan Zimmerman is signed through 2019. The Nationals could move Zimmerman to first, especially if he keeps making bad throws. That would mean moving Adam LaRoche. That’s quite doable. Adam has a reasonable two-year contract. It seems some team is always looking for a first baseman with left-handed power. Too much talent is a good problem.