Miami Marlins Sign Former A’s Reliever That Had One Awful Game

The Miami Marlins have been considered a pitching factory for years now, and with a number of young starters in the mix, as well as new addition Cal Quantrill, their pitching should have some upside in 2025.

They’ve also added a bit of a work in progress to their bullpen mix, signing right-hander Janson Junk to a minor-league deal with an invite to Spring Training. Junk spent time in the big leagues with both the Milwaukee Brewers and the Oakland Athletics in 2024, posting a 6.75 ERA with the Brew Crew, and an INF ERA with the A’s.

Junk’s lone outing with the A’s left him as arguably the worst pitcher in franchise history, at least technically. After being claimed by Oakland on August 31, the 29-year-old made his lone appearance for the club on September 4 at home against the Seattle Mariners.

The game was a complete route, with the M’s winning 16-3, and every Oakland pitcher that took the mound gave up at least four runs. JP Sears went six innings and allowed five runs on five hits and a walk, striking out five. Ross Stripling came on in the seventh and allowed another four runs on five hits and a walk, striking out one.

Then there was Junk, who also pitched in the seventh inning. In fact, he started the frame.

It all started with a leadoff home run to new A’s infielder Luis Urías, which was followed by a double, two singles, a wild pitch, and a walk. Randy Arozarena came up with the bases loaded and smacked a double to right, which scored another pair. Justin Turner walked, re-loading the bases. Victor Robles would add a single to the tally before Junk was pulled for Stripling.

In total, Junk allowed seven earned runs on six hits and a pair of walks without recording a single out. In the final month of A’s baseball in Oakland, that sequence will certainly go down in infamy.

In his big-league career, Junk has tallied a total of 40 innings and has an ERA of 6.75 with a 5.55 FIP. Last season he really started to transition from starter to reliever while in the Brewers’ system, and in 31 Triple-A relief frames he held a 4.35 ERA, nearly a full run lower than it was as a starter. On the other hand, his WHIP went from 1.34 as a starter to 1.71 in relief.

It will be interesting to see which role the Marlins have him start the season in, and if they can help unlock a new level for him over the course of the 2025 campaign. With the move to the ‘pen, he was sitting at 94, a jump of a full tick over where he was the previous season.

Even in a relief role, he was still mixing five pitches in 2024, with his four-seamer, a slider (88 mph), a curveball (83 mph), a sinker (94), and a sweeper (81.6). Perhaps Miami can help him either hone those pitches, or help him choose the best three to work with, if his role is still as a relief arm.