CHICAGO -- Roddery Muñoz felt uneasy when he was called into the manager¡¯s office at Triple-A Jacksonville earlier this week. The 24-year-old right-hander had gotten off to a tough start with the Jumbo Shrimp and wasn¡¯t sure what was coming next.

Mu?oz didn¡¯t receive bad news. Manager Daren Brown informed him that the Marlins were calling him up to the Major Leagues.

¡°I was nervous when I went in there,¡± Mu?oz said via interpreter Will Nadal. ¡°But when I received the news, I was just relieved. I was very happy, and I was just happy to go out there. I knew I was going to give it my all.¡±

Mu?oz, who was called up as the 27th man for Saturday¡¯s doubleheader against the Cubs, started the nightcap at Wrigley Field. In the Marlins¡¯ 5-3 loss, he delivered an impressive performance, under a bevy of unique circumstances. Miami split the twin bill after a 3-2 win on Bryan De La Cruz's clutch homer in Game 1.

On a cold night (42 degrees at first pitch) at a historic ballpark, facing an impressive lineup, the 24-year-old allowed two runs on two hits -- a pair of solo home runs -- and one walk to go with seven strikeouts in five-plus innings.

Only Jos¨¦ Fern¨¢ndez (April 7, 2013) and Dillon Peters (Sept. 1, 2017), each with eight, struck out more batters in their Major League debuts in Marlins history.

¡°Seriously, I was a little bit nervous out there,¡± Mu?oz said. ¡°I'm not gonna lie. But in my mind I was focused, and I knew that I just had to be confident out there. I think I did that.¡±

Mu?oz has made three appearances with Jacksonville this season, allowing 14 runs (13 earned) and 10 hits in 10 2/3 innings, with 12 walks compared to seven strikeouts. With that in mind, manager Skip Schumaker offered a simple message when asked what he hoped to see in the nightcap against the Cubs.

¡°Strikes,¡± Schumaker said between games of the doubleheader. ¡°I just don't want him to hurt himself. Let the defense play. It's cold out there. ¡­ I need them to be active. If they get 10 hits, they get 10 hits. But I want him to challenge them as much as he can.¡±

Mu?oz got Cubs shortstop Nico Hoerner to ground out on a 1-2 sinker, finishing off a six-pitch battle, to lead off the first. Cody Bellinger followed by hitting a changeup high and outside 378 feet over the right-field wall for a solo home run.

It could have been easy for Mu?oz to become rattled then, or when Christopher Morel followed Bellinger by walking in a six-pitch plate appearance.

Instead, Mu?oz stayed composed and struck out Michael Busch and Garrett Cooper to end the inning.

¡°That was just the first inning,¡± Mu?oz said. ¡°Really, I just tried to keep my composure, keep focus out there. It's just the beginning of the game. I was able to settle down.¡±

Mu?oz retired 14 Cubs hitters in order after Morel¡¯s walk, seven on strikeouts. Four of those came on his slider, and one each on his four-seamer, sinker and changeup.

¡°He did a nice job,¡± Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. ¡°His slider was really effective tonight. It was just different kinds of shapes every single time he threw it. He threw a bunch of different shapes, different speed sliders, and that was a really good pitch for him tonight.

¡°So you know credit to him. He pitched well.¡±

Mu?oz mixed his slider (30 pitches), four-seamer (20) sinker (19) and changeup (eight) well. He located where he wanted to, he said, both inside and outside the strike zone.

His four-seamer averaged 95.3 mph and sinker 94.4 mph in the 77-pitch outing. To Counsell¡¯s point, Mu?oz¡¯s slider averaged 87.5 mph, but with a range of 81-91 mph.

Mu?oz¡¯s night ended after Alexander Canario homered to lead off the sixth inning.

¡°He was throwing strikes,¡± Schumaker said. ¡°The velocity was up. He was working on a new breaking ball when he got sent out from Spring Training, and it was real. I mean, it was a really good pitch. Other than the Bellinger homer and then obviously a homer late, I mean, he pitched as good as anybody this year. Really impressive start.¡±

Helping Mu?oz feel comfortable out there was a familiar face behind the plate. Jhonny Pareda, who has caught Mu?oz at Triple-A, started Game 2 behind the plate.

The outing could mean a lot for Mu?oz going forward.

¡°I just think this helps me have that confidence out there,¡± he said, ¡°knowing that I can locate my pitches and have that command. I think I can use that moving forward.¡±