Best of the decade: Mr. Walk-Off started it all on Father's Day in 2006

As the Nationals celebrate 10 seasons in Washington, D.C., we reflect on some of the best moments since the franchise moved to the nation's capital. Each Wednesday for the next 10 weeks, check out Nationals Pastime for a remembrance of one of the watershed moments in Nationals history.

Last month, Ryan Zimmerman beat the Yankees when he blasted his 10th career walk-off home run, putting him elite company. In the history of the National League, only Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt, future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols and home run king Barry Bonds have reached 10 walk-offs. The only two men with more: Hall of Famers Tony Perez (11) and Stan Musial (12).

Coincidentally, Zimmerman's historic parade of walk-offs also began against the Bronx Bombers, on June 18, 2006.

Though baseball had returned a year earlier, this three-game set marked the first time the Yankees had visited D.C. to play the Nationals. A total of 134,991 fans packed venerable RFK Stadium for a hyped-up weekend series that didn't disappoint. Each contest resulted in hair-raising finishes.

In the opener, the Nationals blew a two-run eighth-inning lead and closer Chad Cordero wound up with the loss as the Yankees won 7-5.

The next day, it was the Nats who turned the tables with an epic comeback. Trailing 9-2 in the fifth inning, the Nats began chipping away. By the time they reached the bottom of the eighth, the Yankees' lead was down to one and manager Joe Torre called on legendary closer Mariano Rivera. After Alfonso Soriano tied it with some aggressive baserunning, Jose Vidro gave the Nats the lead with an RBI triple. And then Zimmerman added an RBI single as the Nationals stunned the Yankees.

The finale was set for Father's Day afternoon. Yankees right-hander Chien-Ming Wang battled Nationals rookie lefty Mike O'Connor for seven innings before O'Connor left with the game deadlocked at 1-1. Alex Rodriguez, the reigning American League Most Valuable Player, gave the Yankees the lead on a two-out double in the eighth off right-hander Gary Majewski.

Torre opted to let Wang try to finish it off in the ninth instead of going with Rivera, who was taxed from the previous two days. With one out, pinch-hitter Marlon Byrd reached on a single to right, bringing Zimmerman to the plate. The 21-year-old was in his first full season with the Nationals after the franchise made him their first selection (fourth overall) a year earlier in the 2005 First-Year Player Draft.

Already 1-for-3 on the afternoon, Zimmerman wasted no time with Wang. He jumped all over first-pitch sinker, belting it over the left field wall for a two-run game-winning walk-off homer. The pyrotechnics exploded from the roof of RFK Stadium as Zimmerman rounded first with his right arm pumping high in the air. Halfway on his trip between third and home, Zimmerman tossed his helmet and then leaped on the plate into a swarm of teammates.

With his dad, Keith, in attendance, Zimmerman's Father's Day walk-off was the highlight of an otherwise forgettable sophomore campaign for the Nats in Washington. They went on to lose nine of their next 10 games en route to finishing the season 20 games under .500. But winning that season series against the Yankees on Zimmerman's walk-off will always be remembered as a signature moment in Nats history.

* Miss any of the memorable moments we're highlighting from Nationals history? Here's the list to date:

No. 10: 10-game winning streaks in 2005, 2014