Yu Darvish was scratched from Monday's start against the Royals due to a stiff neck.

He felt discomfort in his neck toward the end of a workout on Sunday.

"I felt a very mild strain in my neck and that caused stiffness," Darvish said in a statement released by the team. "If this was a regular season game, I would start. However, since it is a spring-training game, this is just precautionary on my part."