Reed Johnson tied the game with a pinch-hit home run in the sixth inning and Marlon Byrd belted a go-ahead homer in the eighth to lead the Chicago Cubs to a 7-5 victory in the opener of their two-game series against the Florida Marlins on Wednesday at Sun Life Stadium.

Hitting for starter Ryan Dempster, Johnson launched a two-run shot to left off Marlins starter Ricky Nolasco to tie the game at 5-5.

Byrd, who had his 16-game hitting streak snapped Tuesday against the Cincinnati Reds, had just one hit Wednesday, but it was a big one. He launched a towering home run to left off Edward Mujica (4-2), who allowed two runs in 1 1/3 innings of relief.

Dempster had another rough outing, allowing five runs on eight hits over five innings, but the Cubs' bullpen worked four scoreless frames. Jeff Samardzija (3-0) allowed one hit and two walks over two innings of relief for the win and Carlos Marmol recorded the final four outs for his ninth save of the season.

The Marlins took a 1-0 lead on Hanley Ramirez's home run in the first, his third blast of the season. Ramirez, who entered the contest hitting .204, went 2-for-5 and scored twice. Florida scored four runs in the fifth for a 5-3 lead, with Greg Dobbs' two-run double the key hit.

Darwin Barney had two RBIs and Koyie Hill was 3-for-3 for the Cubs, who snapped a three-game losing streak and have won five straight against Florida.

Nolasco allowed five runs - four earned - on nine hits over six innings with five strikeouts.