Miles Mikolas Signs Contract Extension With St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals have signed starting pitcher Miles Mikolas to four-year contract extension worth $68 million. Mikolas, 30, joined the Cardinals last offseason as a free agent from Japan. Mikolas had never really started before, except for 11 games in the San Diego Padres minors in 2009. After 2009, Mikolas had always been in the bullpen until the Texas Rangers decided to use him as a starting pitcher in 2014. He only started 10 games for the Rangers.

Mikolas went over to Japan to develop himself into a starting pitcher. Mikolas knew he needed a team that would give him an opportunity to start without getting moved to the bullpen. He found that with the Yomiuri Giants.

While playing for the Giants combined for three seasons Mikolas went 31-13 with a 2.18 era, 62 games, 62 starts, 5 complete games, 2 shutouts, 424.2 innings, 69 walks, and 378 strikeouts. After his third season in Japan, Mikolas decided to give the MLB another try. His first time in the MLB didn't go that well. So people wondered if he was the same pitcher or if Japan helped him. Mikolas was a popular free agent with 10 teams wanting him in free agency. He ended up choosing the Cardinals because they train in his hometown Jupiter, Florida. Mikolas ended up going 18-4 wih a 2.83 era in 200.2 innings in his first season back in the MLB. The 18 wins led the NL in 2018. Mikolas even made the All-Star team. No one thought they'd see that in Mikolas when he signed. People thought he'd maybe be a 5th starter.

Mikolas era ranked 4th in the NL. His 32 starts ranked 9th. Mikolas had a whip of 1.071 that ranked 5th. Mikolas had the highest zone percentage of all MLB pitchers, with 48.0% of the pitches being in the strike zone. While the Cardinals were horrible on defense, Mikolas showed he could play defense. Mikolas ranked 3rd in putouts with 19, and 4th in assists with 30.

Overall, Mikolas has played 4 seasons in the MLB. Mikolas is 22-10 with a 3.61 era, 69 games, 42 starts, 1 complete game, 1 shutout, 292 innings, 63 walks, 208 strikeouts, and a whip of 1.18. Will Mikolas repeat his 2018 season with a 2.83 era? Probably not, but you know what you'll get out of Mikolas. He'll eat innings and throw lots of strikes. All in all it's a good signing for Mikolas and the Cardinals. It's a gamble because you don't know if 2018 was a fluke, but it's worth it. Mikolas is a leader in the Cardinals clubhouse and works well with the younger kids.

Mikolas could have maybe made more money if he repeated his 2018 success and hit the free agent market after the season. But who would want to risk losing him in free agency? You could make a case that the Cardinals could have maybe waited to see what he did for the first half of the 2019 season. But what if he wanted to test free agency knowing he was doing well? That happens a lot of the time with players.

Hopefully the next extension at some point will be Paul Goldschmidt for the Cardinals. Then you hardly have any of your free agents to worry about, unless Marcell Ozuna does well.