Inside The Cardinals

Cardinals-Miles Mikolas Era Seemingly Has 1 Final Start Left

Will the St. Louis Cardinals move on from the veteran hurler?
Patrick McAvoy|
Sep 8, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas (39) throws against the Seattle Mariners during the second inning at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images
Sep 8, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas (39) throws against the Seattle Mariners during the second inning at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

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St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals will begin their final series of the 2025 Major League Baseball regular season and it could be the final time we end up seeing one of the club's pitchers on the mound wearing a Cardinals jersey.

Miles Mikolas joined the Cardinals ahead of the 2018 season and has been a part of the organization ever since. There have been a lot of people clamoring for his exit this season, but overall, he's been a solid member of this organization over the years. He was an All-Star in his first season in St. Louis logging a 2.83 ERA in 32 starts. He was an All-Star once again in 2022 when he had a 3.29 ERA in 33 total appearances, including 32 starts.

Miles Mikolas is getting the ball on Friday

St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas
Sep 8, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas (39) throws against the Seattle Mariners during the first inning at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

Entering his start on Friday, Mikolas has appeared in 203 total games with the Cardinals, including 202 starts, and has a 4.14 ERA to show for it. This season, he has made 31 starts so far and has a 4.76 ERA and 96-to-36 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 151 2/3 innings pitched. Although it might not be the season he wants, it is better than 2024 when he had a 5.35 ERA in 32 starts. This season is more comparable to 2023 when Mikolas had a 4.78 ERA in 35 starts.

It's been a few years of flux over with the Cardinals and Mikolas has at least been consistent in the fact that he gets the ball every fifth or sixth day. The Cardinals have had to navigate injuries and inconsistent play, but Mikolas has been relied upon as someone to eat up innings each and give the club a chance.

Mikolas is going to be a free agent after the season ends and all of the signs seem to be pointing towards an exit. If he continues his career -- which he has insinuated that he would -- he should have one more payday in him. Spotrac is projecting his market value to be just under $9 million across one season. That's nothing to sneeze at. There surely will be a team out there that will be in need of a back-of-the-rotation arm who can give you 30-plus starts.

If Friday is the end, hopefully he finds what he's looking for afterward.

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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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