Miles Mikolas's (probable) departure represents the end of an era for Cardinals

Following the trade of closer Ryan Helsley at this year's trade deadline, the number of players who were on the last Cardinals team to win a playoff game became one: Miles Mikolas.

Mikolas is now the longest-tenured player on the St. Louis Cardinals, and his hold on that spot will likely come to an end following his final start this year against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Mikolas, 37, will be a free agent at the end of the 2025 season.

The right-handed starter has spent the last seven years with the Cardinals, by far the bulk of his career. Mikolas was originally drafted by the San Diego Padres out of Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The Jupiter, Florida, native spent parts of three seasons in the majors between 2012 and 2014 with the Padres and Texas Rangers, but he ultimately found a home overseas in Japan.

In his three years in Japan, Mikolas posted an ERA of 2.18 with a 0.99 WHIP and 378 strikeouts in 424 innings. Clearly, he made adjustments overseas, and the Cardinals were willing to see what he could do for them with a 2-year, $15 million contract in December of 2017.

That would be the first of three contracts given to Mikolas by the St. Louis Cardinals.

Mikolas was excellent in his first season back in the majors: He finished with an 18-4 record and a 2.83 ERA across 200.2 innings. He struck out 146 hitters and had a WHIP of 1.071 while also leading the majors with a 1.3 BB/9, the lowest figure across the majors. Miles earned his first All-Star nod that year, and he finished sixth in National League Cy Young voting.

He followed that up with a mediocre 2019 season that saw him go 9-14 with a 4.16 ERA. Mikolas still limited walks, but his hit and home run rates began creeping up, and he pitched 16 fewer innings in as many starts.

Mikolas had a bit of a career reset following a missed 2020 season and an injury-riddled 2021 season. He returned to his 2018 form in the 2022 season, posting a 3.29 ERA in 202.1 innings with a 118 ERA+. Mikolas had a stellar 1.033 WHIP, and he was an All-Star that year. However, this was his final good season with the St. Louis Cardinals.

From 2023-2025, Mikolas would go 27-34 with a 4.96 ERA. He averaged just 174.1 innings per year, and his 85 ERA+ made him a well below average starter. He began getting hit hard in 2023, and his home run rate also shot up while seeing his strikeout rate drop at a commensurate rate. No longer was Mikolas an innings eater who could hold a team at bay.

The issue with Miles Mikolas isn't necessarily his production, though it has been lackluster for a time. The primary issue fans take with Mikolas is that he was given his second contract extension prematurely and for an unreasonable amount of money.

After the 2022 season, a year in which Mikolas would go to his second career All-Star Game, the Cardinals offered him a three-year, $55.75 million deal. He still had one more year left on his previous extension that gave him $68 million over four years; two of those years he was injured and threw only 44 innings in total. Signing to another extension when it wasn't necessary, particularly such a lucrative one, was a bad idea for the Cardinals at the time, and it turned out to be even worse than projections originally believed.

The imminent departure of Miles Mikolas shows that the old guard for the St. Louis Cardinals is all but gone.

For years, Miles Mikolas was the epitome, the embodiment, and the personification of the St. Louis Cardinals' approach to pitching. He relied not on overpowering stuff or strikeouts to carve his way through a lineup. Rather, he survived via a wide pitch mix that he could employ well. Essentially, Miles Mikolas was a pitcher, not a thrower.

For years, this approach to player development and acquisition worked for the organization; four straight postseason appearances from 2019 through 2022 is evidence of this fact. During that time, the Cardinals' pitching staff was second in BABIP (.273) behind only the Los Angeles Dodgers (.260). The only difference is that the Dodgers struck out the ninth-most batters by rate in that era while the Cardinals were sitting 20th in strikeout rate during the same era. The Dodgers also walked very few batters (3.18 BB/9) while the St. Louis pitchers walked quite a few batters (3.97 BB/9).

The poster boy for the high-contact, low strikeout approach that the organization employed was Miles Mikolas. He never struck out more than seven batters per nine innings during that four-year stretch, and he relied heavily on a defense that included several Gold Glovers in Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, Yadier Molina, and Tommy Edman.

As those key defenders began to leave or age, Mikolas saw his BABIP, which was at its lowest in 2022 at .250, balloon up to .311 in 2024.

With Mikolas and president of baseball operations John Mozeliak heading out the door after the 2025 season, an era of pitch to contact is now coming to a close for the St. Louis Cardinals, and thank goodness for that.

The organization is focusing on youth and strikeouts, as is evidenced by their top draft pick of the 2025 draft, Liam Doyle. While the Cardinals won't give up entirely on defense in the near future, they won't be nearly as reliant on a stout defense to fix a flawed pitching staff. Now, the pitchers will be able to strike batters out and know that their defense will have their back if needed.

What's next for Miles Mikolas?

Fans on social media have expressed concern that Miles Mikolas's strong showing at Busch Stadium this year (4-4, 3.42 ERA) paired with his decent September (2-0, 3.00 ERA in 21 innings) may lead to a mutual interest in another contract. The Cardinals don't have much pitching depth heading into 2026, so another starting pitcher would be helpful.

However, a fourth contract with the Cardinals seems farfetched.

In an interview on Foul Territory back in late August, Mikolas talked about his plans for 2026 and beyond. "I would love to (go back to Japan)," said Mikolas. "The more I look back on it, the more I can really appreciate that experience...I think it would be fun for my kids (to go to Japan)."

Mikolas discussed finishing up this season strong and healthy to boost interest in free agency this winter, and he's done that well in September. The 37-year-old starter won't have suitors lining up in a bidding war, but there will certainly be a team looking for starting pitching depth who could be interest in Mikolas's services. He could also use a return to Japan as a fallback.

Miles Mikolas was a perfectly fine starting pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals. He will finish his career with St. Louis with a 68-68 record, a 4.14 ERA, 2 All-Star appearances, a 99 ERA+, and over 1,250 innings pitched. That's a fine career for a starting pitcher. The issue with Mikolas, however, is that he didn't live up to his salary as a #2 or #3 starting pitcher for the Cardinals. He will conclude his time with the Cardinals having received $139.25 million over seven years. That price is a bit too steep considering how much of his career here has been average or below average.