Why Tigers DFA'd former Yankees outfielder amid Dillon Dingler news

The Detroit Tigers had a choice to make. 

Remove a player from their 40-man roster, or have Jake Rogers be their only reliable catcher for the next few days. 

Starter Dillon Dingler took a foul ball off his hand behind the plate yesterday. Detroit has not placed the All-Star backstop on the IL, but he may need a few days to regain full strength in his hand. 

The X-Rays on Dingler's hand came back negative, reports Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic. 

To give Rogers a backup catcher, the Tigers have promoted Eduardo Valencia from Triple-A Toledo, reports Daniel Alvarez-Montes of El Extrabase. 

In order to open space on the roster, the Tigers had to cut ties with someone. 

Today, the AL Central club announced that outfielder Jahmai Jones was designated for assignment. 

Jones, who had a .937 OPS with seven home runs in 72 games with the Tigers in 2025, struggled mightily during his second year with Detroit. 

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In 57 games, he hit a dreadful .137/.219/.221 with just four extra-base hits and a .440 OPS in 105 trips to the plate. 

For the first four seasons of his career, he was nothing more than a fourth outfielder for teams like the New York Yankees and Baltimore Orioles. 

Following his DFA, the Tigers have seven days to trade, release, or place Jones on outright waivers. 

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