"From Phil Mackey of ESPN 1500 AM comes word that Minnesota first baseman Justin Morneau underwent surgery Wednesday to remove a fragment of a herniated disk from his neck.

Morneau had been bothered by the bone fragment for most of the regular season and decided to get it taken care of this week while he continues his recovery from a left wrist injury. The neck procedure is expected to sideline him for at least another six weeks, and perhaps the rest of the year.

Morneau, 30, has batted just .225/.281/.338 this season with four home runs and 22 RBI in 51 games. The native of Canada hasn't been the same since suffering a concussion just before the 2010 All-Star break."