Detroit Tigers fans, mark your calendars: Framber Valdez is nearly ready to return to the mound. The veteran left-hander is currently serving a five-game suspension from Major League Baseball after intentionally throwing at Boston Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story in his last start, but his time on the sidelines is almost up.

Valdez, 32, completed a scheduled bullpen session on Saturday, May 9, before the Tigers' second game against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. While he can't stay for games or be in the clubhouse during them, manager A.J. Hinch confirmed that Valdez is still able to work out with the team. "He's able to work out with us, even though he can't stay for games and be in the clubhouse during the game," Hinch said.

The suspension derailed Valdez's planned start in Sunday's series finale against the Royals, forcing the Tigers to rely on a bullpen-only game. But there's good news: Valdez is eligible to return on Wednesday, just in time for the second game of a three-game series against the New York Mets at Citi Field.

The Tigers haven't officially announced their rotation for the Mets series, but it's shaping up to be right-hander Jack Flaherty on Tuesday, Valdez on Wednesday, and right-hander Keider Montero on Thursday. Valdez, who signed a contract worth up to $115 million over three seasons in early February, has posted a 4.57 ERA with 15 walks and 35 strikeouts across 43⅓ innings in eight starts this season.

As the Tigers navigate this stretch without their ace, Hinch emphasized the importance of depth. "We're starting to develop it," he said. "We have two games here that we're entirely focused on, and we've just got to see how we come out of this series. We're going to need to use a lot of pitching over the next couple of days."

For Tigers fans, the return of Valdez can't come soon enough—and when he's back, you'll want to be ready to cheer him on in style.