Miami Marlins Seeing Encouraging Signs From Janson Junk

MIAMI – In his second season with the Miami Marlins, Janson Junk is pitching to his role, as the fifth starter.

Junk came onto the scene in 2025 as a minor league free agent and finished with a 4.17 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP in 110 innings pitched through 21 appearances (16 starts). Junk has posted similar numbers through four starts entering this season. 

Junk has a 4.50 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP in four starts this season. Before the Marlins’ 7-5 loss against the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday, McCullough said it’s “been very encouraging to see the velocity that he’s shown in the early goings.”

“We’ve seen his fastball at times in the mid-90s and just how that helps the breaking stuff then to be firmer and it helps the changeup play off of that,” McCullough said. 

The Marlins are counting on Junk to give them at least five innings each start, which is what he has done in the previous two outings. His second start of the season was the deepest of his career, when he went 7.1 innings with only two runs allowed. 

“Every time he takes the ball, we expect he’s not going to beat himself,” McCullough said. 

So far, even if Junk isn’t mainly to blame, the Marlins aren’t winning with him on the mound. The only time Miami was victorious with Junk starting was his first start against the Chicago White Sox, where he didn’t get the win because he was taken out before completing the fifth inning. 

Junk is projected to finish out the six-game homestand against the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday, at 12:10 p.m.