on august 1, scherzer hit his first career home run, a three-run blast off chris o'grady of the marlins, but left the game shortly thereafter with neck spasms. the neck issues recurred, and the club placed scherzer on the disabled list for the first time since 2009, retroactive to august 15. he was then removed from his next start on august 18 against the san diego padres at petco park as the neck issue recurred. scherzer returned to the rotation on august 28, earning a win against the marlins.