Tigers Activate Jackson Jobe

The Tigers announced they’ve activated Jackson Jobe from the 60-day injured list. Reliever Brenan Hanifee was optioned to Triple-A Toledo to open a spot on the pitching staff. Detroit had a pair of 40-man roster openings after trading Casey Mize and Gage Workman to San Diego.

Jobe will slot into Detroit’s rotation. He’ll make his season debut tomorrow at Oracle Park in a matchup with Landen Roupp. That’ll be his first appearance in the big leagues in 14 months. Keider Montero gets the ball tonight against a Giants bullpen game.

The former #3 overall pick underwent Tommy John surgery last June. Jobe was in his first season as an MLB starter after briefly debuting in relief in 2024. He made 10 starts as a rookie, posting a 4.22 ERA despite a subpar strikeout and walk profile. Jobe was one of the sport’s top pitching prospects when he made his debut and showed huge stuff on his rehab assignment. He averaged nearly 99 mph on his four-seam fastball.

Detroit could’ve waited until tomorrow to officially activate Jobe. Hanifee has pitched in each of the last two nights and would’ve been unavailable regardless, so they elected to make the move tonight. As Evan Woodbery of MLive observes, Jobe had reached the end of the usual 30-day rehab window for pitchers. They could’ve petitioned MLB for an extension because he’s coming back from UCL surgery, but there’s no point in doing that for an extra day of a reliever who wouldn’t have pitched either way.

The Tigers have won five of six since their bullpen meltdown against the Orioles last Wednesday. They’re only 3.5 back of the division-leading White Sox and just a game out in a crowded Wild Card picture. They have a winnable series against the Giants and have a pivotal six-game stretch next week when the Guardians and White Sox head to Comerica Park.