The Tigers didn’t think that Brandon Inge’s struggles at the plate were related to his surgically repaired knees.

But they may have been health-related, anyway.

The longest-tenured Tiger, who just turned 34 on May 19, and had his career turn 10 on Wednesday, was put on the 15-day disabled list with mononucleosis on Friday.

The move was retroactive to Thursday.

Inge had played in 52 of 55 games for the Tigers, but was never able to break out of the slump began the season in, hitting just .211 on the season. He had just one home run and 12 RBI, and had more strikeouts (44) than hits (34).

Catcher Omir Santos was recalled from Triple-A Toledo Friday to replace Inge on the active roster. He will likely only be on the roster until Magglio Ordonez (ankle weakness) is done with his rehab stint at Toledo, which was scheduled to start Friday and last through the weekend.

It wasn’t necessary for the Tigers to recall a defensive replacement for Inge, since Danny Worth, Ramon Santiago, Don Kelly and Ryan Raburn can all play third, if needed.

The move comes just two days after Inge earned his “10-and-5” rights, an occasion acknowledged by visiting Twins manager Ron Gardenhire — who was Minnesota’s third-base coach for Inge’s first game as a Tiger in 2001 — with a bottle of champagne and a note. By Major League Baseball rules, a player who has 10 years of service time and five of those with his current team, cannot be traded without his consent.