In the days leading up to the series, manager Lou Piniella said he would speak to his team about playing here. Piniella cited the heat and humidity. It's believed he also wanted to remind the players not to spend too much time at the hotel pool.

"I talked to a couple of the players," Piniella said. "I think they read the comments in the paper. They read the paper a lot more than I do. So if it's in the paper, they read it. They know what we have to do."

Daryle Ward's pinch three-run homer in the ninth rallied the Cubs from a 5-3 deficit.

The Cubs extended their road winning streak to nine, the franchise's longest since the pennant-winning year of 1945.

"This is my first win in Florida as Cubs manager," Piniella noted.

CUBS 6, MARLINS 5: Daryle Ward, who was 4-for-40 as a pinch hitter this year, hit a three-run homer in the ninth to bring the Cubs back from a 5-3 deficit. 3B Mark DeRosa hit a two-run homer in the fourth. He was on base four times. RHP Carlos Zambrano was erratic, giving up four runs and five hits in six innings. He walked five and ran his pitch count to 119. Chad Gaudin worked two innings of relief, and Kerry Wood pitched the ninth for his 25th save.