Minnesota Twins’ Tommy Milone scratched from start

The Minnesota Twins and left-hander Tommy Milone received some more frustrating news today, and Milone has been scratched from his scheduled start on Monday in Detroit with a sore neck, according to Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press.  Milone revealed he’s been dealing with his neck almost all year, though the pain was manageable until now.

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The 27-year old Milone began the year with the Oakland Athletics, but was traded to the Twins at the deadline in exchange for outfielder Sam Fuld, whom the Twins had picked up via the waiver wire. Milone became expendable when Oakland upgraded its rotation in-season by acquiring Jon Lester, Jason Hammel and Jeff Samardzija, but his time with the Twins has been marked with inconsistency, and he’s walked 11 batters in his 20.2 innings with Minnesota. Milone said the neck hadn’t bothered him until now:

"“My shoulder feels better. My neck, not so much. It’s something I’ve been battling all year. It’s never really been a problem when I’ve been throwing until Wednesday (in Cleveland), when I threw my last bullpen.”-Tommy Milone"

Berardino said right-hander Anthony Swarzak could replace Milone on Monday against the Detroit Tigers, but that decision will depend on how the Twins bullpen fairs with three games in less than two days before then.