(Best E Casino) - Rookie right-hander Mike Parisi makes the second start of his major-league career tonight, when the St. Louis Cardinals close out a weather-impacted three-game series against the host Washington Nationals with a day-night doubleheader .

Wednesday's game was postponed after rain started just before the scheduled 7:10 p.m. first pitch, though the official decision came after a more than 2 1/2-hour delay.

It was the second straight night the teams had to wait because of the weather. Tuesday's 6-1 Cardinals victory over Washington was delayed 2 hours, 40 minutes due to rain.

Both of Wednesday's scheduled starting pitchers - Todd Wellemeyer for St. Louis and John Lannan for Washington - will start today's opening game.

Wellemeyer, a 29-year-old native of Louisville, was 2-1 through six starts this season before downing the Chicago Cubs, 5-3, on May 4.

Overall, in his last six starts, he's 4-0 with two no-decisions and has allowed 28 hits and nine earned runs in 37 innings, earning recognition as the National League's pitcher of the month for May.

He's making his first career start against Washington after seven straight relief appearances, in which he's 0-1 with a save and a 5.40 earned run average in 10 innings of work.

Lannan looks to reverse the result of his initial meeting of the season with the Cardinals on April 6. Lannan took a 3-0 loss in that game, allowing seven hits and two runs in 6 2/3 innings of his season debut. He's 4-4 with a pair of no-decisions in 10 starts since.

His last win came May 18 at Baltimore, when he gave up four hits and a run over 7 1/3 innings of the Nationals' 2-1 victory.

The scheduled starter for the Cardinals in the nightcap, Parisi came out of the bullpen for his first eight appearances of 2008 before getting a start on Saturday against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

He struggled in the new role, however, getting touched for eight hits, three walks and eight runs in 2 2/3 innings of a 14-4 Pirates' triumph.

Parisi is getting a second chance thanks to an injury to starter Joel Pineiro, who remained in St. Louis to nurse a strained right groin.

A 6-foot-3, 215-pounder, Parisi was the opening day starter for the Cardinals' farm team at Triple-A Memphis.

Veteran right-hander Tim Redding tries to regain his successful form for the Nationals when he opposes Parisi in game two.

Redding, a 30-year-old now toiling for his fourth major-league team, had won three of four starts between May 4 and May 19 before consecutive no-decisions against Milwaukee and Arizona.

In those two games, both eventually won by the Nationals, Redding allowed 14 hits and eight runs in 11 innings, walking six and striking out eight.

He is 3-5 in 12 lifetime appearances against the Cardinals, while posting a 5.28 earned run average in 58 innings.

St. Louis swept a three-game series from the Nats earlier in the season.