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(Sports Network) - National League Central foes square off for the first time this season tonight at Pittsburgh's PNC Park, where the Pirates will attempt to build off a much-needed win in the opener of a two-game series with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Pittsburgh halted a six-game slide with Tuesday's 3-2 triumph over the visiting Florida Marlins, with Xavier Nady's two-RBI single capping a three- run sixth inning that spurred the Bucs to victory.

Paul Maholm (1-2) earned his first win of the season with six solid innings in which the left-hander allowed just one run on four hits and struck out six. Matt Capps held the Marlins scoreless in the ninth to notch his fifth save of 2008.

Ryan Doumit went 2-for-4 for Pittsburgh and tied the contest at 1-1 with an RBI double in the sixth.

Pirates outfielder Nate McLouth was hitless in two official at-bats, however, which ended his 19-game hitting streak to begin the season.

Ian Snell hopes to duplicate Maholm's mound effort when he faces the Cardinals in Wednesday's opener. Pittsburgh's Opening Day starter has compiled a 2-1 record and a respectable 4.07 earned run average over his first four starts, but was saddled with a loss his last time out.

Snell surrendered three runs and nine hits over six innings at Chicago's Wrigley Field this past Friday, but wound up on the short end of a 3-2 decision to the Cubs. Despite the setback, the hard-throwing righty delivered his third consecutive quality start.

The 26-year-old is 3-3 with a 3.40 ERA in eight career appearances against St. Louis, seven of them starts. Snell posted a 2.00 ERA in four matchups with the Cardinals last year, but went just 2-2 in those games.

He will be opposed tonight by Todd Wellemeyer, who is coming off an excellent showing in St. Louis' 11-1 home win over San Francisco on Friday. The right- hander limited the Giants to one run and four hits to improve his season record to 2-0.

Wellemeyer has yielded two or less runs in three of his first four starts and fanned at least six batters in every one of those appearances. The former Kansas City castoff brings an impressive 3.24 ERA into tonight's tilt.

The 29-year-old Wellemeyer has pitched against the Pirates 12 times previously, but only once as a starter. That came last September at PNC Park, and Wellemeyer tossed six frames of one-run ball despite not receiving the decision. He is 1-1 with a 3.38 ERA lifetime versus Pittsburgh.

St. Louis currently resides in second place in the NL Central standings but enters this series having lost three of its last four games. The Cardinals missed out on an opportunity for a two-game sweep of rival Milwaukee on Tuesday, as the Brewers came through with a 9-8 victory on Gabe Kapler's one- out single off Jason Isringhausen in the bottom of the 12th inning.

The Cardinals trailed 8-3 after six innings, but rallied for four runs in the seventh and later tied the contest on Albert Pujols' RBI fielder's choice in the top of the ninth.

Pujols finished with two RBI and a pair of hits, while Aaron Miles went 4- for-5 with a run-scoring single on the afternoon.

St. Louis won 12 of its 18 encounters with Pittsburgh last season and went 7-2 at PNC Park a year ago. In their most recent visit to the Steel City, the Cardinals swept a three-game set from the Bucs in late September.