Miami Marlins at Los Angeles Dodgers

LOS ANGELES – Marlins right-hander Janson Junk had begun his pre-start routine when Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani waved at him from the outfield. Junk nodded back. Ohtani, one of the world’s most recognizable athletes, is a perennial MVP candidate looking to add Cy Young hardware to his already impressive collection. Junk is a lesser-known pitcher who found his footing in the Majors in 2025. Yet the interaction wasn’t random. Junk and Ohtani overlapped two seasons with the Angels from 2021-22, which began an active stretch of five straight All-Star campaigns for Ohtani. During that two-year span, Junk appeared in seven games (six starts) and posted a 4.74 ERA (13 ER in 24 2/3 IP) to open his MLB career. In Tuesday night’s matchup, Junk outdueled Ohtani in a 2-1 win over the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. “I haven't seen him \[in\