Pirates manager Don Kelly said Thursday that Jones (elbow) will make his season debut Friday at home against the Twins, Jason Mackey of MLB.com reports.
It will be Jones' first start at the big-league level since he underwent UCL surgery last May. Jones looked sharp in five rehab starts, logging a 2.89 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 24:6 K:BB across 18.2 innings. He went 4.1 frames and threw 76 pitches in his last outing, so Jones will not be available for a full workload versus the Twins. Expect the Pirates to manage Jones' innings after he missed all of the 2025 campaign.