WASHINGTON (AP) — Miles Mikolas and the Washington Nationals have agreed to a $2.25 million, one-year contract, adding a durable veteran to the mix as the young team sorts out its starting rotation in spring training.
The club announced the move Wednesday. Mikolas can earn $750,000 in performance bonuses: $100,000 each for 100 innings or 30 games pitched, 110 or 40 and 120 or 50, $200,000 for 130 or 60, and $250,000 for 140 or 70.
The 37-year-old Mikolas, a two-time All-Star, spent his past seven seasons with St. Louis. The right-hander went 8-11 with a 4.84 ERA for the Cardinals in 2025 and is one of four major league pitchers to make at least 31 starts in each of the last four seasons.
He has made 130 starts since 2022, tied for second-most in the big leagues during that stretch.
The rebuilding Nationals traded All-Star starter MacKenzie Gore to Texas last month for five minor league prosects. Jake Irvin, Mitchell Parker, Cade Cavalli, Brad Lord and Foster Griffin are among the pitchers looking to lock down rotation spots entering camp. Josiah Gray, an All-Star in 2023, is coming back from Tommy John surgery and hopes to be ready for the start of the season.
Mikolas is 72-75 with a 4.24 ERA in 241 games, including 213 starts, over 10 major league seasons with San Diego (2012-13), Texas (2014) and St. Louis (2018-25). He pitched in Japan from 2015-17 and sat out the pandemic-shortened 2020 season with an injury.
Mikolas went 18-4 with a 2.83 ERA in 2018, leading the National League in wins. He was selected in the seventh round of the 2009 amateur draft by the Padres and pitched six effective innings for Team USA in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
In another roster move, the Nationals placed left-hander DJ Herz on the 60-day injured list.
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FILE - St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs on Sept. 26, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley, File)
As the Trump administration prepares to close the Kennedy Center for a two-year renovation, the head of Washington's performing arts center has warned its staff about impending cuts that will leave “skeletal teams.”
In a Tuesday memo obtained by The Associated Press, Kennedy Center President Richard Grenell told staff that “departments will obviously function on a much smaller scale with some units totally reduced or on hold until we begin preparations to reopen in 2028,” promising “permanent or temporary adjustments for most everyone.”
Over the next few months, he wrote, department heads would be “evaluating the needs and making the decisions as to what these skeletal teams left in place during the facility and closure and construction phase will look like.” Grenell said leadership would “provide as much clarity and advance notice as possible.”
The Kennedy Center is slated to close in early July. Few details about what the renovations will look like have been released since President Donald Trump announced his plan at the beginning of February. Neither Trump nor Grenell have provided evidence to support claims about the building being in disrepair, and last October, Trump had pledged it would remain open during renovations.
“Upon the completion of these upgrades, Americans and visitors from all over the world, for generations to come, will enjoy the Center and marvel at its spectacular features and design,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement Wednesday.
It's unclear exactly how many employees the center currently has, but a 2025 tax filing said nearly 2,500 people were employed during the 2023 calendar year. A request for comment sent to Kennedy Center Arts Workers United, which represents artists and arts professionals affiliated with the center — wasn't immediately returned.
Leading performers and groups have left or canceled appearances since Trump ousted the center's leadership a year ago and added his own name to the building in December. The Washington Post, which first reported about Grenell's memo, has also cited significant drops in ticket revenue, which — along with private philanthropy — comprises the center's operating budget. Officials have yet to say whether such long-running traditions as the Mark Twain Award for comedy or the honors ceremony for lifetime contributions to the arts will continue while the center is closed.
The Kennedy Center was first conceived as a national cultural facility during the Eisenhower administration in the 1950s. President John F. Kennedy led a fundraising initiative, and the yet-to-be-built center was named in his honor following his assassination. It opened in 1971 and has become a preeminent showcase for theater, music and dramatic performances, enjoying bipartisan backing until Trump's return to office last year.
“This renovation represents a generational investment in our future,” Grenell wrote. “When we reopen, we will do so as a stronger organization — one that honors our legacy while expanding our impact.”
A bronze sculpture of President John F. Kennedy, left, is reflected in a mirror, right, in the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center For The Performing Arts, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026 in Washington. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)
A bronze sculpture of President John F. Kennedy is displayed in the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center For The Performing Arts, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026 in Washington. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)
A woman walks outside The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center For The Performing Arts, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026 in Washington. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)
