A team trying desperately to make the postseason faces a team trying to lay the groundwork for the future when the Cardinals and Cubs meet at Busch Stadium on FOX Saturday baseball.

In a national broadcast set to get started at 12:20 p.m. CT (1:25 ET), St. Louis will send its best shot to the hill in ace Chris Carpenter. The Cubs will counter with rookie left-hander Rich Hill, one of a slew of youngsters that Chicago is evaluating with an eye toward 2007.

It may look like a mismatch at first, but the second-division Cubs have given the contending Cards fits all season long. And Hill, 26, has turned in fine games in three of his last four starts.

The Cubs enter the weekend with an 11-5 season advantage over their old rivals. The series at new Busch Stadium marks the final meetings between St. Louis and Chicago this season.

The Cubs-Cards rivalry may not have its typical sizzle this year, but with one team trying to salvage pride and a good feeling about the year and the other clinging to playoff hopes, be sure that this series means plenty.

"Every game for us is big," Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols said recently. "We need to play the game the right way."

Starting pitching has been an issue for much of the season for St. Louis, but every fifth day, there has been a ray of sunshine. Carpenter has followed up his Cy Young campaign with another outstanding season, and he's coming off back-to-back quality performances.

On Saturday at Wrigley Field, he lasted seven solid innings as St. Louis completed its first series win in Chicago of the year.

"I think he's been really good this season," manager Tony La Russa said. "He's had a couple times when he wasn't quite as sharp, but overall, he's been really good."

Hill, meanwhile, is still learning the ups and downs of pitching in the big leagues. The last time he took the mound, he pitched a quality game, but the Cubs lost just the same.

"It was just a few pitches here and there," Hill said. "It's a funny game. Some plays here and there, and it makes a difference."

He'll try to be just the latest left-handed starter to frustrate the Cardinals. Despite a lineup heavy on right-handed hitters, St. Louis has gone 17-29 against lefty starters on the year. Yet the Redbirds are a superb 33-14 in day games.

That stands in stark contrast to Chicago, which, despite playing more day games than anyone else in the Majors, has gone 26-40 under the sunlight.