Trevor Bauer might be ready for his closeup in Cleveland - MLB

Trevor Bauer was impressive in his one-start call-up to the Indians last week and kept things rolling in his return to Triple-A yesterday, throwing six shutout innings with nine strikeouts versus just one walk.

Arizona soured on Bauer, which is how he ended up in Cleveland, and his control problems caused his prospect stock to drop considerably last season. Still, he’s only 23 years old and the former No. 3 overall pick appears to be very close to putting everything together in a big way.

Combined between Triple-A and the Indians this season Bauer has thrown 18 innings with a 1.00 ERA and 26/5 K/BB ratio. His raw stuff has always been No. 1 starter-caliber and he’s always generated a ton of strikeouts, but if the Indians have gotten Bauer to consistently throw strikes they could have something pretty special very soon. And the Diamondbacks may soon regret selling him for pennies on the dollar.

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ST. LOUIS — Miles Mikolas is sticking with the St. Louis Cardinals.

The right-hander signed a three-year, $55.75 million contract on Friday that will carry through the 2025 season.

The new deal replaces a $68 million, four-year contract signed in February 2019 that covered the 2020-23 seasons and was set to pay $15.75 million this year.

Mikolas will receive a $5 million signing bonus payable July 1 and will make $18.75 million in 2023 and $16 million in each of the following two seasons. Mikolas can earn a $250,000 bonus for winning a Cy Young Award, $50,000 for All-Star election or selection or winning a Gold Glove, $100,000 for League Championship Series MVP and $150,000 for World Series MVP.

Mikolas is scheduled to make the second opening-day start of his big league career next Thursday when the Cardinals host Toronto. Mikolas went 12-13 with a 3.29 ERA last season while helping St. Louis to the NL Central title.

“Miles stands among the top pitchers in the game today, and has continued to provide a steady presence for us both in the rotation and inside the clubhouse,” St. Louis general manager John Mozeliak said in a statement.

Mikolas is 45-40 with a 3.79 in 143 games with San Diego, Texas and St. Louis. He recently pitched six shutout innings in two appearances for the U.S. in the World Baseball Classic.