Burnes (elbow) could make his season debut for the Diamondbacks on Tuesday in Kansas City, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM reports.
Burnes underwent Tommy John surgery last June and suffered a setback this June with a teres major strain, but he's progressed well since the resumption of a throwing program in July and his 2026 debut is imminent. The right-hander tossed two perfect innings on 17 pitches in his first rehab start with Triple-A Reno on Aug. 29, and he was slated to throw a bridge game Thursday to further build his stamina. It's unclear how many pitches Burnes threw Thursday, but he would be quite limited from a workload perspective versus the Royals. If/when Burnes is officially tapped to start Tuesday's game, it will be his first in the big leagues in more than 15 months.