Could Zimmerman's triple be a sign of things to come?

With two men on in the first Tuesday night, Ryan Zimmerman lined a wicked spinning shot to deep center field that Braves outfielder Ender Inciarte was unable to glove. The ball rolled to the wall.

Brian Goodwin and Bryce Harper scored to give the Nationals a 2-0 lead. They would eventually win 4-1 thanks to eight strong innings from Stephen Strasburg, the Nats' second straight victory.

Standing on third base after the hit, Zimmerman looked up and signaled to the heavens as if to say, 'Thank you!'

And what about making it all the way to third? Manager Davey Martinez was more concerned about how Zimmerman was going to find a way home if they tried to squeeze the run in from third.

"I thought, 'Oh, boy, he's got to go to third,' " Martinez said. "You often wonder. The biggest thing was I was telling myself: I hope Michael (A. Taylor) doesn't bunt because then he'll have to try to score. That'll be tough."

It was only his fourth hit of the season. Zimmerman said it's a start.

"I've been having decent at-bats," Zimmerman said. "Not as many as I would want to have, but I haven't really been getting rewarded for hitting the ball well. So for one to finally fall in and give us an early lead, especially the way Stras threw tonight, that was the more important thing."

And the look to skies?

"I don't know, just messing around," Zimmerman said.

It was his first hit of the series. Did Martinez's decision to put him at No. 5 in the lineup instead of in the cleanup role make a difference?

"No big deal," Zimmerman said. "I told Davey I'd hit wherever he wants me to hit. We have so many good hitters in this lineup that it doesn't matter where you hit. You're going to have RBI opportunities and I've always been like that. I could care less where I hit."

But Zimmerman also knows that he is still not quite where he wants to be at the plate. He has hit some pitches hard that have gone right at fielders. The triple Tuesday night was vintage Zimmerman - hit so hard it spun back from right to left in front of Inciarte, who could not handle it.

"It's definitely better than getting out again," Zimmerman said. "I mean we're still, what (11) games in, something like that, so I hope not, but I'll probably have another week like that end of the season. If I don't, it'll be a great year. So hopefully I won't, but they're never fun. You just have to keep grinding through them and keep working and just keep going out there and trying to have good at-bats."

Zimmerman acknowledges that he is streaky hitter and always has been. The veteran first baseman is now hoping that this big hit might be a point where he can turn the slump around. Seeing the personality and playful side of Zimmerman displayed after the triple - when he looked and pointed to the heavens - might be a good sign that he is relaxing at the plate as he attempts to get back into a groove.