Tigers designate Jacque Jones for assignment

5/5/2008 6:29 PM

DETROIT (AP) -Jacque Jones was cut Monday by the Detroit Tigers, who had promised a lineup shakeup going into a homestand against the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees.

Detroit designated Jones for assignment and has 10 days to trade the outfielder, put him on unconditional release waivers or send him outright to the minors.

Jones hit just .165 with a homer and five RBIs in 24 games for the Tigers, who acquired him during a busy offseason from the Chicago Cubs. He is in the final season of the three-year deal he signed with the Cubs for $16 million.

``Jacque Jones is not the reason we're four games under .500,'' manager Jim Leyland said. ``Had he gotten off to a bad start? Yes, he had. It was totally unfair. He's been a class act the whole time.''

To take Jones' spot, Detroit purchased the contract of outfielder Matt Joyce from Toledo. He hit .299 with five homers and 21 RBIs in 28 games for the Triple-A club.

Joyce was in right field for Monday night's game against the Red Sox and batting seventh.

Tigers regular designated hitter Gary Sheffield took over for Jones in left field and was inserted into the sixth spot. Sheffield had been hitting third. He is also off to a slow start, batting .185 with two home runs and five RBIs in 23 games.

Sheffield said he was excited to be returning to the field.

``I need to be a baseball player, I'm not a baseball player sitting there,'' said Sheffield before Monday night's game.

The 39-year-old Sheffield last played the outfield July 21, when he injured his shoulder in a collision with second baseman Placido Polanco while playing right field at Comerica Park.

Curtis Granderson remained the leadoff batter and Polanco was still in the second spot. Carlos Guillen, who had been hitting sixth, replaced Sheffield in the third slot.

Magglio Ordonez and Miguel Cabrera were in their usual fourth and fifth spots, respectively. Edger Renteria, who had been hitting seventh, was eighth and Ivan Rodriguez was ninth.

Detroit dealt utility player Omar Infante to Chicago in exchange for Jones in the offseason. The Tigers also acquired Miguel Cabrera, Dontrelle Willis and Edgar Renteria during the winter.

Jones - in his 10th season - is a .278 hitter with 165 homers and 628 RBIs.

He played for the Minnesota Twins from 1999-05 and hit .300 in the 2002 and '03 with 43 homers over those two seasons.

Jones languished on the Cubs' bench in the first half of last season and was nearly traded before closing the season with solid production after becoming a starter.