Ten Years in the Majors: Miles Mikolas Celebrates Baseball Milestone in Old Town Alexandria
The Washington Nationals pitcher marked 10 years of Major League service with a surprise celebration at Landini Brothers and flowers from Atelier Ashley Flowers
ALEXANDRIA, VA — Congratulations, Miles Mikolas, ten years in Major League Baseball is a milestone worth celebrating!
For Washington Nationals pitcher Miles Mikolas, the occasion was marked not only by a custom belt buckle, but by a Sunday evening surprise party organized by his wife, Lauren Mikolas, surrounded by friends, family, and flowers.
His wife and biggest cheerleader, Lauren Mikolas, had this to say:
“This is a big deal. We share this accomplishment with him. We have been on the sidelines cheering him on every step of the way. But that’s nothing compared to the work Miles has put in to achieve his dreams. Baseball is such a grind already, day in, day out. You’re performing at the highest level every day. He handles it all, and with a smile. He’s the teammate of teammates. He is beloved by everyone he encounters. He is a special guy, and we are so proud of him for this achievement.”
Following Sunday’s Nationals game, Mikolas arrived at Landini Brothers on King Street, where Lauren had organized a surprise celebration in honor of his reaching 10 years of Major League service.
“Lauren wanted everything to be really thoughtful and sentimental. She brought photos and print outs chronicling his career, custom baseball cookies, and commissioned party flowers from me. One bouquet to represent each one of the five teams he has played for.” says Ashley Greer, owner of Atelier Ashley Flowers, co-founder of Art in Bloom DC and author of this article.
An Unusual Road to 10 Years
Reaching the 10-year mark is an extraordinary and relatively rare achievement in MLB, and Mikolas took a particularly interesting road to get there.
The Florida native was drafted by the San Diego Padres in 2009 and made his Major League debut in 2012. He later pitched for the Texas Rangers before making what would become a career-changing move to Japan.
From 2015 through 2017, Mikolas pitched for the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball. Rather than being a detour from his Major League career, Japan became one of its most transformative chapters—not only for Miles, but for Lauren as well.
In a 2018 Inside Access interview with Elizabeth McNickle for Cardinals Insider, Lauren gushes about the couple’s time abroad and the many amazing opportunities and experiences it brought them both. During her time in Japan, Lauren became a celebrity herself, but her focus on her husband never wavered. When he got the opportunity to move home and play at a more competitive level for the Cardinals, they took it.
For Mikolas, it has always been about the love of the game and pushing himself to be the very best athlete and baseball player he can be.
His mom, Elaine Knapp had this to say about her son, “Miles was fortunate enough to be that one-in-a-million Little League player to make it all the way. The hard work, perseverance, talent, and character that brought him to where he is today should most definitely be celebrated. 10 years in Major League Baseball!!! Congratulations, Miles!”
A New Chapter in St. Louis
When Mikolas returned to the United States with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2018, he returned as a different pitcher, with newfound confidence. He went 18–4 in his first season back, earned his first National League All-Star selection and began what would become a long tenure in St. Louis.
It was also during that All-Star year that the Mikolas twins were born, and the couple spoke publicly about the sacrifices involved in balancing work and home.
Mikolas earned a second All-Star selection in 2022 and established himself as a veteran Major League starter.
In 2026, the journey brought Mikolas to Washington, D.C., and our local team, the Nationals. Go Nats!
Five Teams, Five Bouquets
On Sunday, all of those chapters came together, and the upstairs room of Landini Brothers was filled with love, laughter, pasta and flowers.
Ashley Greer had this to say about the blooms:
“Sometimes I shy away from competing color schemes when asked, but I believe that sentiment overrules convention every time. So, for the San Diego Padres, we did yellow and brown; for the Cardinals, red and white; for the Yomiuri Giants, orange and black; for the Rangers, blue and red; and for the Nationals, red, white and blue.”
“The trick is to make each piece so beautiful that you don’t mind it contrasting with the others, and to try to space them in a pleasing way. Life can’t always be all about aesthetics.”
Each centerpiece represented a chapter in more than 14 seasons of uniforms, cities and memories, but the flowers were only a small part of an evening filled with so much joy and appreciation for the full journey that brought them there.
