The Detroit Tigers ended their week on a high note as Tarik Skubal’s 13-strikeout performance over seven shutout innings helped the Tigers earn a 3-0 win over the Minnesota Twins on Sunday night. Showcased in front of a national audience, Comerica Park was in a festive mood after hosting its first Sunday Night Baseball telecast since 2017, but not everybody left with something to celebrate.
That’s because a Twins infielder was sent picking a few hours after Sunday’s loss. After an underwhelming two months in Minnesota, he’ll be looking for a new job and may not have opened another avenue for the Tigers to run away with the American League Central in July.
Twins DFA Jonah Bride Hours After Series Loss to Tigers
According to Dan Hayes of The Athletic, the Twins have designated infielder Jonah Bride for assignment. Bride was acquired after previously being DFA’d by the Miami Marlins in May but he never got going at the plate, hitting .208/.375/.236 with three RBI in 72 at-bats.
#MNTwins DFA’d Jonah Bride. Would appear Royce Lewis will join them Tuesday.
— DanHayesMLB (@DanHayesMLB) June 30, 2025
The move looks like a boost for the Twins on paper as Hayes added that infielder Royce Lewis will likely be activated from the injured list ahead of Tuesday’s series opener against Bride’s former team in Miami. But it also is a sign of a team falling further behind Detroit in the American League Central race.
An infielder by trade, Bride may have meant more to the Twins on the pitching mound with four appearances during the month of June. Predictably, this didn’t go well with 10 earned runs in six innings but it was part of a pitching staff that has imploded after Pablo López was placed on the injured list with a shoulder strain on June 5.
With fellow starter Bailey Ober allowing 14 home runs in the month of June – including four by the Tigers in a 10-5 win on Saturday – the Twins were outscored by their opponents by 45 runs last month, sinking them 12.5 games in the American League Central standings.
Even Lewis’s return is nerfed by a .202/.282/.303 batter’s line with two homers, nine RBI and a pair of hamstring injuries this season and the Twins showed they are of little threat to the Tigers this weekend, sitting 12.5 games back in the American League Central division despite taking Friday’s opener in Detroit.
With the second-place Cleveland Guardians sitting 11.5 games behind the Tigers in the division, it appears there’s little in the way of Detroit celebrating its first division title since 2014. With a big move at the trade deadline a possibility, the Tigers have a chance to go even further and contend for an American League Pennant.