Miami Marlins proving old pitching adage, may already need to Junk rotation plans

Let me ask you a question, Miami Marlins fans.

Have you ever heard anyone say that you can never have enough starting pitching?

Okay, okay. Please stop heckling. It's not as if I came up with the phrase that's up there for biggest cliche in baseball. I believe it falls somewhere between "We have money and will spend it" and "Always having conversations" for most oft-repeated Miami Marlins baseball observation, but fans of every franchise hear it uttered every season. Because it's true of every club, every year. Even the Dodgers have a couple months where they're feeling stretched for options to throw out there in the starting rotation.

Unfortunately for the 2026 Miami Marlins though, their first moment for hearing that old pitching adage comes less than a week into spring training.

Why? Because Janson Junk just rolled his ankle, and is presently sporting a walking boot as the rest of his fellow pitchers work on getting ready for the season.

It's a tough break for Junk, who was kind of a revelation last season after being plucked off the free-agent scrap heap last February by Marlins President of Baseball Operations Peter Bendix. The ERA was an ugly 4.17, but the 1.13 WHIP and 1.0 WAR of value he returned tells a better story. As does the sterling work he submitted as a long-relief option in 2025, as well as the six quality starts he had when he did take the mound to start the game. Throw in the bang for the buck nature of getting all this production from a player who won't even be arbitration eligible until 2028, and it's clear he had become a real asset for the organization.

So again, tough break, right up there with the one he was dealt last week when the Marlins brought in Chris Paddack in a clear effort to challenge his title of Best Marlins Mustache.

Sorry, felt the need to lighten things up a little. Well that, and offer a segue into the matter of just how altered Miami's rotation plans would be if Junk is forced to miss significant time. Which to be clear, no specific timeline has been issued for that yet. This could be a non event. This could be the thing that keeps him from cracking the Opening Day roster. It's too soon to tell on that score.

However, what is not too soon too tell is that this significantly stretches Miami's pitching depth, at least in terms of options fans had any right to feel good about taking the ball every fifth day to open the season. A team with Miami's financial issues does not cut Paddack a $4 million check if the plan isn't to run him out there until either his arm falls off or he proves worthy of trading. So that's three rotation spots gone counting Sandy Alcantara and Eury Perez...with about fifty-feet of something Brad Pitt mentioned in that Moneyball meme between them and Paddack.

Junk was one of the names most fans felt reasonably confident would be better than Paddack. If he's gone...that significantly increases the risk of an Adam Mazur or Ryan Gusto needing to be pressed into service. As of this moment, Braxton Garrett and Max Meyer are still there to keep that from happening. As are top prospects Thomas White and Robby Snelling, who some believe have a chance to make the team out of camp.

Welcome as it would be, calling the rookies up early would be a departure from how the team operates, and can't be counted on even if they do prove they are MLB ready in camp. Something that in and of itself can't be counted on.

Which leaves just Brax and Max, recovering from injuries themselves, standing between a Miami Marlins starting rotation mostly full of upside...or a starting rotation mostly full of unappealing fifth starter types.

Get well soon, Janson.