VIERA, Fla. — Third baseman Ryan Zimmerman is optimistic about reaching a long-term deal with the Washington Nationals before opening day.

Zimmerman agreed to a $3,325,000, one-year contract Friday and rejoined the Nationals early Saturday morning. He was the last player in the major leagues scheduled for an arbitration hearing.

"It's a difficult process," Zimmerman said Saturday. "It wasn't a strain, it was just back and forth talking, and that's how it gets done, ultimately. I think if we didn't have the relationship we have, where we were so open with each other, I don't know if it would have gotten done the way it got done."

Zimmerman and the Nationals met at the midpoint of their arbitration figures: Zimmerman had submitted $3.9 million, while the team had countered with $2.75 million.

The agreement includes performance bonuses of $75,000 for 500 plate appearances, and $50,000 each for 550 and 600 plate appearances.

Zimmerman said there could be a multiyear deal in place by Washington's opener at Florida on April 6.

"This is where I want to play, and I think we have a great situation and it's getting better and better each year," he said. "I think we're getting closer and closer every time we talk."

This was the first time Zimmerman was eligible for arbitration. He made $465,000 last season, when he batted .283 with 14 homers and 51 RBIs while limited to 428 at-bats because of a left shoulder injury.

Despite the down year, Zimmerman still expects to get a lucrative contract.

"I'm going to be giving up my free-agent years, and you give up a lot of the stuff you work hard for," he said. "That's the whole point of the system. That's why the union's set up. If you put in your time and if you work hard, now you have the advantage. For you to give that away to the team, something has to work out."

Zimmerman was taken by the Nationals with the fourth overall pick in the 2005 amateur draft out of the University of Virginia and made his big league debut that September.

In 2006, his first full season, Zimmerman hit .287 with 20 homers and 110 RBIs and finished second in NL Rookie of the Year voting to Florida's Hanley Ramirez. He has a career batting average of .282 with 58 homers and 258 RBIs.