WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Sean Doolittle arrived at the University of Virginia late in the summer of 2004 from New Jersey, where he had led Shawnee High to the state title as a pitcher and first baseman.
One of the first teammates he met at Virginia was Ryan Zimmerman, two years ahead of Doolittle and a junior on the 2005 squad.
“He was on a different level than anyone else,” said Doolittle, 31, standing at his locker here at the Nationals spring training complex. “He had two years on me but mentally his approach to everything, it was professional, it was businesslike.