Jul 25, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas (39) walks on the field before the first inning against the San Diego Padres at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

Cardinals Predicted To Cut Ties With 10-Year Veteran All-Star Pitcher

Originally posted on St. Louis Cardinals on SI
By Zach Pressnell | Last updated Aug 12, 2025 10:00 AM ET

The St. Louis Cardinals were on the cusp of being a postseason contender this season, but they opted to sell and continue their rebuild rather than make an ill-advised push for the World Series in a league with multiple loaded powerhouse rosters.

The Cardinals offloaded expiring relievers Phil Maton, Ryan Helsley, and Steven Matz with the Helsley trade being the nail in the coffin. Now, St. Louis has a few more moves to make before the year ends.

FanSided's Zachary Rotman recently predicted the Cardinals would cut ties with veteran starting pitcher Miles Mikolas ahead of the end of the season. Rotman seems to believe the Cardinals will designate the righty for assignment in the coming weeks.

Miles Mikolas could be designated for assignment this month

Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

"Erick Fedde's struggles masked how poorly Miles Mikolas has pitched in what will likely be his final season in St. Louis. Now that Fedde is gone, Cardinals fans have come to fully realize that Mikolas is almost just as much of a disaster," Rotman wrote. "If the Cardinals were willing to DFA Fedde, they should be willing to do the same with Mikolas.

"At the end of the day, starting Mikolas every fifth day doesn't help the Cardinals organization in any way. The team has gone just 10-12 in his starts (50-47 whenever anyone else takes the ball), and Mikolas has especially folded against elite competition, so it's not as if he's helping them win now. Additionally, this 36-year-old on an expiring contract who almost certainly won't be back in 2026 is taking a rotation spot from a prospect like Quinn Mathews who deserves a look at this point."

At this point, the players on the Cardinals' roster should either be pieces of the future who are still trying to figure it out at the big league level or guys who help the team win. Right now, Mikolas does neither of those things.

In fact, Mikolas has a negative WAR over the last two seasons, so it could be argued that he helps the team lose. Pair that with the fact that he's blocking a roster spot that could be used on a top pitching prospect like Tekoah Roby, Tink Hence, or Quinn Mathews and Mikolas begins to look like a clear cut candidate.

At this point, there's a chance the Cardinals leave him on the roster down the stretch, but cutting ties would be the better move.

This article first appeared on St. Louis Cardinals on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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