ATLANTA -- Cardinals manager Mike Shildt is opting for experience by giving Adam Wainwright the start on Sunday in Game 3 of the National League Division Series against the Braves.

Wainwright will be making his 13th postseason start, and he has a 3.03 playoff ERA -- including a 1.72 ERA at Busch Stadium.

Dakota Hudson will start Game 4 on Monday.

“Really talking about experience,” Shildt said. “Waino has been really good. Both have been really good. That's the thing about our rotation, when you make these decisions. ... When we were sitting there talking about it, we do our due diligence and go through it rightfully so, but you look up, take a step back, and you go, 'We've got good starting pitching.'”

Setting the rotation up this way allows Wainwright (14-10, 4.19 ERA) and Hudson (16-7, 3.35 ERA) to make their starts at home, where they have been significantly better. Wainwright has a 2.56 ERA at home, compared to a 6.22 ERA on the road. Hudson has a 2.75 ERA at Busch Stadium and a 4.13 away ERA.

Ponce de Leon, Cabrera make NLDS roster

The Cardinals opted for innings, recent success and roster composition when putting together their NLDS bullpen. Daniel Ponce de Leon and left-hander Génesis Cabrera made the roster, while John Gant was left off.

• Cardinals set roster for NLDS

Gant, who began his career with the Braves before being traded in 2016, posted a 2.22 ERA in the first half. But that ballooned to 6.65 after the break -- including a 13.50 ERA in September.

Cabrera provides a third left-hander in the bullpen -- joining Tyler Webb and Andrew Miller -- to face a lefty-heavy Braves lineup. The move speaks to the Cards’ confidence in Cabrera, a 22-year-old rookie who made a few spot starts early in the season but found a more prominent role in the bullpen recently.

“I definitely feel like, when you're looking at what he brings to the table, it's electric, right?” president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said. “And I think just trying to harness that is probably most important. But I do feel like since he's been a part of our club, the second time around, he seems to be maturing and growing into this role even quicker. So I do think he could be a valuable resource for us as we enter the postseason.”

• Cards-Braves position-by-position breakdown

Ponce de Leon didn’t get to pitch a lot of innings in September (eight innings in three games, including one start), but he threw three scoreless frames in the Cardinals’ 19-inning loss against the D-backs on Sept. 24. Shildt pointed to the right-hander’s splits, too, as a factor in keeping him on the roster.

Ponce de Leon has held lefties to a .164 average and a .522 OPS. Right-handed batters have had more success against him, with a .756 OPS. So Ponce de Leon can also help maneuver through the Braves’ power hitters.

“He provides a length,” Shildt said. “He provides a length that we can count on. He's done a nice job in that, did a nice job with three scoreless in Arizona, took advantage of the opportunities he was able to receive. … If we need the length, which hopefully we do not, he'll be available. But he's also able to navigate both sides of the lineup.”