Ram will return to NASCAR next year in the Truck Series, a comeback the Stellantis-owned brand believes is the first step toward launching a stock car program in the top Cup Series.

Ram, which left NASCAR after the 2012 season, will race in the third-tier Truck Series alongside rivals Ford, Chevrolet, and Toyota. Ram becomes the first new manufacturer to enter NASCAR at the national level since 2007.

Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis made the NASCAR announcement Sunday before the Cup race at Michigan International Speedway. Kuniskis has bold goals and ideas — he’s vowed to make 25 product announcements over 18 months — and he said Ram will enter its trucks aggressively with the intention to be disruptive.

“The way we’re going to do it is unlike anyone else,” Kuniskis said. “The reason that we’ve been out of NASCAR for 12 years is a very tough [return on investment]; it is a very tough business decision to make. But when we say we’re back, when we say nothing stops Ram, when we bring the Hemi [engine] back, when we bring some of the other stuff that we haven’t shown you, it makes perfect sense to be back in the space and back up.”

Kuniskis said Ram will tap into NASCAR’s estimated fan base of 20 million “and turn it into 80 or 100 million.”

“We have a plan. We know how we’re going to do it. We think we have a path to get to that. We think people are going to like the way we’re doing it because it’s going to be fun,” he said. “Not ready to share all the details with you yet, but I told you that the experiential piece was going to be just a little bit of how we’re doing it. It’s going to get crazier from there.”

Ram raced out of the starting gate by using the Cup race at Michigan, which is just 90 minutes away from automotive capital Detroit, to announce its return. Ram staged a demonstration of its truck on the frontstretch before the start of Sunday’s race.

Kuniskis anticipates having four to six trucks at Daytona for the opener next February.

John Probst, NASCAR senior vice president and chief racing development officer, indicated Ram may not be the first announcement of a new manufacturer, with talks continuing with other brands. NASCAR last welcomed a manufacturer into the Truck Series in 2004 with Toyota.

“We’re excited that they [Ram] have interest in the Cup Series,” Probst said of Stellantis. “I don’t want to jinx ourselves, but I would say we are very close with one other [manufacturer]. Even with that, there’s one or two others that we’re a little bit earlier in the discussions.

“We all know that a [manufacturer] deciding to come into NASCAR, it’s a big commitment for them. It’s not something that they take lightly. It requires a lot of research and approval at the highest levels. We’re confident right now. We like the position we’re in and think that we’re a pretty good investment for a [manufacturer].”

Stellantis features 14 automotive brands, including Dodge and Chrysler. Dodge raced in NASCAR through the 2012 season and left the same month it celebrated the Cup title with Brad Keselowski and Penske Racing.

“We have cars in our company,” Kuniskis said.

CLEVELAND — Shane Bieber promised himself after undergoing Tommy John surgery last April that he would be honest about his rehabilitation process.

Even though the Cleveland Guardians ace is going through his first setback, Bieber is trying to remain optimistic.

Bieber is in the middle of a seven-day pause from throwing after experiencing soreness in his right elbow following his first rehab start on May 31 and a bullpen session on Tuesday.

The right-hander was scheduled to make his second rehab start with Double-A Akron on Friday before being shut down.

“My mind went back to a very close buddy of mine said a few weeks or a few months back when I was starting bullpens. He was like, ‘Just don’t freak out. If you get a setback, everybody gets at least one,'” Bieber said before Saturday’s game against the Houston Astros. “I was hoping to be that anomaly, but at the same time, maybe it’s just part of the process and I’m trying to listen to my elbow and my body and do what’s best for myself and the team in the long term.”

Bieber will be checked again the middle of next week before the team’s medical staff and specialist Dr. Keith Meister decide the next steps.

Bieber threw 21⅓ scoreless innings in an Arizona Complex League game on May 31, which was his 30th birthday. The 2020 American League Cy Young Award winner faced nine batters, allowed one hit and struck out five while throwing 42 pitches.

“I’m a little frustrated with the timing of it as I get out here to Cleveland and join the team, but unfortunately, these rehab processes aren’t exactly linear,” Bieber said. “I’ve had a fantastic progression up to this point. A small hiccup, but hopefully we’ll just keep it at just that.”

Bieber — who agreed to a one-year, $14 million contract last fall with a $16 million player option for 2026 — appeared to be on pace to return to the Guardians’ rotation in late June, but that could be delayed until after the All-Star break.

Cleveland (33-29) went into Saturday 7½ games behind Detroit in the AL Central, and a half-game out of a wild-card spot.

Guardians starters have the sixth-highest ERA in the American League (4.11).

NEW YORK — Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Saturday that Alex Bregman felt good after starting a running program at Fenway Park but is still far from returning from a strained right quadriceps.

“The progression is going well,” Cora said before the Red Sox continued their series against the New York Yankees. “Let’s see how he feels tomorrow and then we’ll go from there, and obviously we’re still far away from him starting the baseball progression.”

Bregman has been out since May 23 with a significant strain, similar to his left quad strain that cost him 58 games for the Houston Astros in 2021.

Bregman started the running program Thursday. He will also have Sunday off before resuming running later next week.

Signed by the Red Sox as a free agent to a $120 million, three-year deal during the offseason, Bregman was hitting .299 and 11 homers and 35 RBI.

Marcelo Mayer, who hit his first career homer in Friday’s 9-6 loss, has made 10 starts at third base but was not in the lineup against left-hander Ryan Yarbrough and will likely be out of the lineup against southpaw Carlos Rodón on Sunday.

The Red Sox entered Saturday with nine losses in 13 games since Bregman was injured.

Cora also said Kutter Crawford is likely to throw a bullpen session at the end of next week as he tries to prepare for a minor league rehabilitation assignment. On Friday, Cora said Crawford was likely to throw a bullpen session this weekend.

Crawford hasn’t pitched in a game this year because of patellar tendinitis in his right knee. Cora had said Monday that the 29-year-old right-hander would start a rehab assignment this week, then said the following day that Crawford felt wrist pain. He said Friday that Crawford does not have any structural damage.