(My Sportsbook) - Recent first-round pick Chris Volstad meets the Chicago Cubs for the second time in eight major-league starts today when the Florida Marlins host the National League Central front-runners in the third and final test of a three-game series at Dolphin Stadium.

A 6-foot-7, 190-pound right-hander, Volstad was the 16th overall pick in the 2005 draft and made his Marlins debut with a win in relief against the Colorado Rockies on July 6.

He went 8 2/3 innings to defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers in his first start on July 11, then went 0-2 with a no-decisions in three starts before rattling off two more victories against Philadelphia and St. Louis.

The no-decision actually came against the Cubs on July 26 at Wrigley Field, where he allowed six hits and two runs in six innings.

Overall in 38 2/3 innings, Volstad has allowed 35 hits and 13 runs.

For the Cubs, right-hander Ryan Dempster looks to get within a win of his personal one-season best.

The 31-year-old Canadian was a 14-game winner with the Marlins in 2000 and won 15 times with Florida in 2001 before a string of injuries and a stint as a full-time closer limited him to just 22 victories between 2002 and 2007.

He returned to the rotation with the Cubs this season and hit the ground running, picking up his 10th win against the Cincinnati Reds on July 8.

He's 5-3 overall in his last 10 starts, including a 6-2 defeat of the St. Louis Cardinals on Aug. 10, in which he allowed six hits and two runs in 6 2/3 innings.

Dempster made his first career start against the Marlins on July 25 and got a no-decision after giving up two hits and a run in six innings of the Cubs' 3-2 loss.

In 11 career matchups with Florida, he's 1-1 with three saves and a 2.40 earned run average in 15 innings.

On Saturday, Hanley Ramirez finished 2-for-3 with a home run and a walk, as the Marlins edged the Cubs, 2-1.

Cody Ross knocked in the other run for the Marlins, who banged out only four hits for the third straight game. With the win, Florida put an end to its three-game slide and remained 3 1/2 games behind New York for the top spot in the NL East after the Mets downed the Pittsburgh Pirates, 7-4, on Saturday.

Anibal Sanchez (2-2) allowed just one run on three hits with six strikeouts and a season-high five walks over 5 1/3 innings to pick up the win. Kevin Gregg tossed a scoreless ninth to notch his 27th save.

Henry Blanco homered for Chicago, which had won nine consecutive games away from the friendly confines of Wrigley Field.

Sean Marshall (2-3) was the hard-luck loser, yielding two runs on four hits and three walks in five innings of work. The towering left-hander, who returned to the starting rotation after a month-plus in the bullpen, matched his career-high with eight punch outs.

The teams have now split the season series, 3-3, with the first four meetings at Wrigley Field. Florida went 6-0 in the 2007 season series and swept a three-game set in South Beach from Sept. 25 - 27.