(Sports Network) - Adam Wainwright gets the nod for the St. Louis Cardinals this evening, when they resume a three-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park.

Wainwright has won back-to-back starts and is 4-0 over the previous five trips to the mound. He last pitched on September 7 versus Florida and held the Marlins to just a run and six hits in eight innings of his team's 3-1 victory. The effort pushed Wainwright to 9-3 this season with a 2.85 ERA.

The right-hander will face the Pirates for the second time this season after losing to them on June 2 at Busch Stadium. Wainwright was reached for five runs in eight frames, as the Cardinals suffered a 5-4 loss that day.

In 10 career appearances (six starts) against Pittsburgh, Wainwright is 3-2 with a 4.70 earned run average.

Jeff Karstens will handle pitching duties for the Bucos on Saturday and has lost five straight starts, allowing three or more runs in each of those outings.

Karstens lasted only three innings the previous time out on September 7 at San Francisco, as he surrendered eight runs -- five earned -- and six hits in an 11-6 setback to the Giants. Karstens fell to 2-5 with a 4.46 ERA in seven starts with Pittsburgh.

The right-handed Texas Tech product, who is 0-4 with a 6.04 earned run average in four PNC Park starts this season, has never faced the Cardinals.

On Friday, Paul Maholm was stellar in eight-plus innings and Nate McLouth drove in five runs, as the Pirates battered the Cardinals, 10-2.

McLouth collected three hits, falling a single shy of the cycle, and scored three times for Pittsburgh, which slammed the brakes on a six-game losing streak. Luis Cruz went 3-for-5 and scored twice, while Brandon Moss had two RBI.

Maholm (9-8) gave up two runs on seven hits to get the victory. The left- hander helped his own cause, going 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI.

Mark Johnson drove in a run for the Cardinals, who have lost three games in a row and find themselves five games behind Milwaukee in the NL wild card standings. The Brewers' game in Philadelphia on Friday was rained out.

Joel Pineiro (6-6) absorbed the loss after allowing seven runs on eight hits in four-plus innings of work.

Pittsburgh has won eight of 15 matchups in the series this season.