Williams on resting players and Zimmerman's progress

Manager Matt Williams is fielding a noticeably different lineup tonight as the Nationals try to sweep the Braves in Atlanta. He wanted to rest all of his regular starters one night after clinching the National League East title, but Williams anticipates that most of his position players will be back in the lineup tomorrow night in Miami. "There's a long way to go yet. It's gratifying," Williams said to reporters of the division title. "It's a culmination of a lot of hard work for guys to get to this position. We had some guys that played a lot of games for us and done really well. We'll give a lot of them the day off today and rest up and get back at it tomorrow. "With the exception of anyone who lingering things - Rochie's (Adam LaRoche) back, Jayson's (Werth) shoulder, Anthony (Rendon) has played just about every day, so has Desi (Ian Desmond). So it's important to make sure that they're OK. In anticipation of tomorrow, yeah, going back to the regular guys and trying to win more games." The Nats clinched the division with 11 games left to play in the regular season, but Williams knows baseball players are creatures of habit and is aware of the importance of keeping a routine. "It's important for us to continue to play and have rhythm and timing and feel for the game," Williams said. "This time of the year, you take days off and your body shuts down. We don't want to give them too much because it's not good for them." Left-hander Gio Gonzalez was originally scheduled to start today's game, but Williams pushed him back until tomorrow. Rookie Blake Treinen will make his sixth start of the season and is expected to throw between 60-70 pitches, according to Williams. Infielder/outfielder Ryan Zimmerman had another good day in an instructional league game in Viera, Fla., according to Williams. Zimmerman played five innings in the field, two at third base and three at first base. He did collect four hits in eight at-bats including a double. Williams is not sure when Zimmerman will rejoin the team, but he is expected to DH tomorrow and have approximately 10 at-bats. He is expected to play in left field on Friday and then the Nationals will make a decision on when he will return to the club. With the Nats playing so well, Zimmerman is expected to be inserted into the starting lineup, but no decision has been made about the postseason roster just yet. "I would anticipate (Zimmerman) playing pretty regularly. He's gonna have at-bats," Williams said. "If we get to the end of the season and we have to make a decision on something, we have to get his rhythm and timing and make sure his leg is OK. I anticipate him getting a lot of at-bats here. It's going to be a challenge to find him at-bats. "It's difficult because there are a lot of talented guys here and there are questions and Zim's one of them. We'll have to look at as we go. I think in the grand scheme of it, who wouldn't want Zim? He's a dynamic offensive force for any team. It's important for him to be part of this club. Again, we won't be able to do it if he's not healthy. So we have to get him in there first and get him back to playing. Part of that process will him coming back here at some point and getting at-bats."