The St. Louis Cardinals, once one of the National League's perennial playoff contenders, find themselves in a situation bordering on unfamiliar in the club's recent history.
The Cardinals head into play on Tuesday three games under .500 (68-71) and are currently sitting in fourth place in the NL Central, 17.0 games behind the division-leading Milwaukee Brewers and 5.5 behind the Cincinnati Reds for a wild card spot. While the franchise's on-field product is lagging behind that of past years, its off-field product is arguably even worse, as the Cardinals are currently grappling with issues revolving around attendance at Busch Stadium.
Improving that on-field product is one way to remedy those attendance woes, and a writer covering the team believes that parting ways with starting pitcher Miles Mikolas could help in that regard.
Moving Mikolas could provide more opportunities for the Cardinals' up-and-coming talents
Redbird Rants' Stephen Parello wrote that Mikolas is one of three current Cardinals players the club should consider shopping before the conclusion of the 2025 season, thereby providing big-league opportunities to players who are part of its long-term plans.
"Things haven't gone the way Miles Mikolas and the Cardinals had hoped when the two sides came to terms on a second contract extension ahead of the 2023 season. An All-Star with the Redbirds in 2018 and 2022, Mikolas regressed hard in 2023 with a 4.78 ERA. 2024 was even worse with a 5.35 mark, and the 37-year-old hasn't rebounded at all in 2025, posting a 5.17 ERA in the final year of his deal," Parello wrote.
"With youngsters like Quinn Mathews looking promising down at Triple-A Memphis, it's time to expedite the divorce between the organization and Mikolas and give the veteran a head start on deciding what his future holds."
In addition to his high ERA (which has shrunken slightly to 5.04 after a five-inning outing against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Aug. 28), Mikolas has pitched to a 6-10 record and 1.35 WHIP this season. He has also recorded 86 strikeouts to 32 walks in 130.1 innings pitched across 26 starts.