St. Louis Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak is in his final trade deadline in charge of the club. At the end of the season, he will hand over that control to Chaim Bloom, formerly of the Boston Red Sox. Mozeliak traded closer Ryan Helsley and more on Wednesday for prospect capital, as the Cards hope to get younger and build around the next generation of St. Louis stars. That has proven easier said than done, though, given the sticky situation the Cards find themselves in with Nolan Arenado and Miles Mikolas.
Arenado's trade struggles are well-documented. The ten-time gold glover doesn't want a trade out of St. Louis, or at least he didn't this winter. However, the Cardinals are persistent, and with Mozeliak and Bloom clearly heading in a different direction – one that doesn't include contending for a postseason spot next year – perhaps the veteran will change his mind. The Houston Astros, for one, could be interested given the injury to Isaac Paredes.
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St. Louis Cardinals could have a tough time trading Miles Mikolas
However, one player the Cards didn't expect to have a lot of trouble trading was starting pitcher Miles Mikolas. While Mikolas has struggled this season to the tune of a 4.83 ERA, there is a great need for reliable innings-eaters around baseball. If Mikolas is willing to be traded, the Cardinals will abide. Yet, that seems to be the problem.
Per Jon Heyman, "Mikolas recently changed his mechanics and added 3 mph to his fastball so he may be of interest. But with full no-trade, chance for a trade is limited."
Mikolas isn't an ace-level starting pitcher, at least not anymore. However, he could still land the Cardinals some decent prospect capital in return, as the starting pitching market isn't all that prevalent at this year's deadline, per recent rumors. The issue is that Mikolas holds a no-trade clause, and could use it to screw over Mozeliak one final time.
The 36-year-old thanked Cardinals fans after his last start, leaving some to assume he was on the way out. However, here we are just hours away from the deadline, and Mikolas remains on the roster.
Mozeliak's final deadline won't hinge on trading Mikolas, per say, but the more payroll he is able to shed while bringing in young talent for the next Cardinals core could very well determine his lasting legacy.