DETROIT -- Veteran starting pitcher Edwin Jackson will return to the mound in a Detroit Tigers uniform for the first time in nearly a decade on Friday night.
The Tigers said they plan to select Jackson’s contract from Triple-A Toledo before the game against the Kansas City Royals.
To create a 25-man roster spot for Jackson, left-handed reliever Blaine Hardy was optioned to Toledo. The Tigers will also have to create a 40-man roster spot for Jackson on Friday. That move has not yet been announced.
The Tigers signed Jackson to a minor-league deal two weeks ago and assigned him to Toledo. In two starts with the Mud Hens, he allowed five earned runs on 11 hits in 7 2/3 innings, striking out two and walking four.
Jackson, 35, has pitched in parts of 17 MLB seasons for 14 different teams. He went 1-5 with an 11.12 ERA in eight appearances for the Toronto Blue Jays before being released last month.
Jackson pitched for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Tampa Bay Rays before being traded to the Tigers after the 2008 season in exchange for outfielder Matthew Joyce.
Jackson went 13-9 with a 3.62 ERA for the Tigers in 2009, the No. 2 starter on a pitching staff that included then 26-year-old ace Justin Verlander and 20-year-old rookie Rick Porcello.
He was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks after the season as part of a three-team deal in which the Tigers acquired Max Scherzer, Austin Jackson and Phil Coke.
Jackson has pitched in 402 games in his career, posting a record of 105-128 with an ERA of 4.70.
Hardy, 32, has pitched parts of the last six seasons for the Tigers and has shuttled frequently between Toledo and Detroit. He’s been optioned 11 times in his career, beginning in 2014.
In 39 appearances for the Tigers in 2019, Hardy is 1-1 with a 4.47 ERA with 29 strikeouts and 13 walks in 44 1/3 innings.