Inside The Cardinals

Cardinals Ex-All-Star Clearly Eyeing Return To St. Louis

Will the St. Louis Cardinals look to bring the veteran back?
Patrick McAvoy|
Jul 12, 2020; St. Louis, Missouri, United States; A view of empty seats as the St. Louis Cardinals play a simulated game at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images
Jul 12, 2020; St. Louis, Missouri, United States; A view of empty seats as the St. Louis Cardinals play a simulated game at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

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St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals seem likely to move on from veteran starting pitcher Miles Mikolas, but he continued to make it clear that he wants to return on Friday.

Mikolas took the mound for St. Louis, potentially for the final time. He pitched five innings against the Chicago Cubs and allowed four earned runs. Overall, Mikolas will finish the 2025 regular season with 31 starts and a 4.84 ERA and 100-to-37 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 156 1/3 innings pitched.

All season to this point, there's been chatter about the future of Mikolas. His three-year, $55.7 million deal is set to expire sending the 37-year-old to free agency. He has had a rollercoaster of a 2025 season, although it was better than the 2024 campaign. There were people calling for the Cardinals to move on from Mikolas earlier in the campaign when there was chatter about bringing Michael McGreevy up to the big league club on a consistent basis. But, the Cardinals never moved on.

Will the Cardinals move on from Miles Mikolas?

St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas
Sep 26, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas (39) delivers a pitch against the Chicago Cubs during the first inning at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Although it seems likely that the Cardinals will move on from Mikolas this offseason, he has continued to make it clear that he's interested in returning, as transcribed by MLB.com's Jeff Jones.

"Not my best,” Mikolas said of his final start of 2025. “Thought my fastball came along the last couple innings. Felt really good physically. Just went in there, you know, trying to challenge some guys. Got beat here and there, but not my best. Not as good as you want it to be...

“I’m too optimistic to fully commit to the idea that I’m not coming back. There’s 29 other teams, but I think it’s pretty well known what my favorite colors are — (I’m a) Cardinal red kind of guy. If this is my last one, then I really did cherish my time here and couldn’t have been happier to be a part of this organization for the last eight years."

Mikolas has been with the Cardinals since before the 2018 season. He has earned two All-Star nods and has a 4.16 overall ERA in 204 appearances with the Cardinals. Will St. Louis give him another shot?

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Patrick McAvoy
PATRICK MCAVOY

Patrick McAvoy's experiences include local and national sports coverage at the New England Sports Network with a focus on baseball and basketball. Outside of journalism, Patrick also is pursuing an MBA at Brandeis University. After quickly rising as one of the most productive writers on the site, he expanded his reach to write for Baseball Essential, a national baseball site in Sports Illustrated Media Group. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding Inside The Cardinals, please reach out to Scott Neville: nevilles@merrimack.edu

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