Detroit Tigers: Who Leaves When J.D. Martinez Returns?

If Romine and Collins are going to be 25-man roster fixtures, this puts Jones’s spot on the roster in question. Unlike Collins, Jones does have options available, so he could be moved to Toledo without worrying about other teams snapping him up.

Unfortunately, Jones has not been playing as cleanly as both Romine and Collins. He fought hard in spring training to earn a spot on the 25-man roster, but his youth and inexperience are beginning to show up. His batting average has yet to rise about .250 and it is currently sitting at an ugly .182 with an OPS of .634. Jones came out big in the first game of the season with a home run on his first at-bat, but he’s been limited to only 5 more hits since that day.

His fielding has also looked like that of a rookie lately, too. In Wednesday’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays, he called a catch in the first inning, only to see it fall to the turf. Although the Tigers blame Rays’ fans on the issues that caused a pair of dropped fly balls, they were still dropped. Jones also had the chance to rob a home run it by Daniel Robertson by making a jumping catch. Again, this is an issue that can be attributed to youth.

Will these weaknesses affect the front office’s decision when J.D. Martinez returns? There is a possibility. Even though it still could be a few weeks before Martinez returns, Jones needs to put on his best performances at the plate and on the field.