St. Louis Cardinals: Miles Mikolas honored but might not play

PHOENIX, AZ - JULY 04: Miles Mikolas #39 of the St. Louis Cardinals delivers a pitch in the first inning of the MLB game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on July 4, 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images)
PHOENIX, AZ - JULY 04: Miles Mikolas #39 of the St. Louis Cardinals delivers a pitch in the first inning of the MLB game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on July 4, 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images) /
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Outside of the final vote, which involves Matt Carpenter, the St. Louis Cardinals will be solely represented by Miles Mikolas in the All-Star game.

It is a well deserved selection; Miles Mikolas has been great since agreeing to come back from overseas and pitch for the St. Louis Cardinals. The All-Star selection is 9-3 through his first 17 appearances since returning to the MLB. While it is an honor to be an All-Star, it looks like the St. Louis Cardinals representation might not even play.

Mark Saxon reported that because of the natural order of the rotation, Mikolas might not get his day in the sun. The veteran righty is slated to throw Tuesday and Sunday before the break, and that will likely take him out of the mix.

Family Game

That might work out for the best. This is the first All-Star selection for Mikolas, and his wife will not be able to be there. At the end of the day, baseball is a family game and if loved ones can’t watch, then it makes the sweet moment less sweet.

Representation

It looks like the St. Louis Cardinals will not have anyone play in the game, barring Matt Carpenter winning the final vote on Wednesday. Obviously, just by the selection the Redbirds will be represented. But for the extent of on field play, they will not.

Without going down the rabbit hole of snubs, the true All-Star is Yadier Molina. Even with missing time, he is posting some of the best numbers among catchers. But, he is not there and we should not dwell.

Cardinal All-Stars

For the time being, it looks like Jhonny Peralta will stand as the last starter from the Cardinals. Before the season, if I were asked, I would have claimed several potential All-Stars. None of them would have been Mikolas, but St. Louis is sure happy he is performing the way he is.

Next: All-Star Voting Conundrum

Molina should probably be starting, and Marcell Ozuna probably shouldn’t have started so poorly that he didn’t make it. But these are the cards the St. Louis Cardinals have been dealt, and for everything the All-Star game is worth, it is just more fun when Redbirds are between the lines.