PITTSBURGH -- Rowdy Tellez came through against Cardinals southpaw Matthew Liberatore on Wednesday, delivering the opening and closing RBI salvos as the Pirates took the series at PNC Park with a 5-0 victory.

Tellez, who entered with a .148 batting average and just one RBI against southpaws on the year, opened the scoring with a two-strike base hit in the second to plate Ke’Bryan Hayes, sparking a four-run rally that was capped by a two-run Connor Joe double. In the fourth, Tellez got the best of Liberatore again, crushing an fastball and depositing it into the Allegheny River.

That was more than enough for Martín Pérez, who worked around four hits and five walks to toss six scoreless frames. After allowing at least five earned runs in three of his four starts since coming off of the injured list, he was able to get timely ground balls to keep the Cardinals off the plate.

The Pirates ended up taking both home series out of the All-Star break against the Cardinals and Phillies this homestand. They are 52-50.