Miles Mikolas has ranked among the worst starting pitchers in the majors for the last two seasons in ERA, strikeout rate, swing-miss rate. The contact rate against him is enormous. He doesn't miss many bats. And at 36 years old, Mikolas will be even more vulnerable (read: bad) in 2025.

Mikolas is under contract for 2025 at a salary over $17 million. If the Cardinals plan to keep Mikolas in place just because they owe him that money, the decision will intensify questions about their commitment to winning.

They need a better rotation in 2025, and it would be ludicrous to stay the course with Mikolas. They have to dump him and just eat the money that he's owed.

By the way: according to Spotrac, which tracks salary info, only four MLB teams invested more money on starting pitching this season than St. Louis. As we see again, this a front office that wastes too much money.