Braves.mlb.com

BRADENTON, Fla. -- Chuck James impressed plenty of people with his rookie season. But with the command of a third pitch, the left-hander can only get better.

Until recently, James joked that he only used his slider when he was looking to give up a home run or a double off the wall. On Friday, James used the pitch to escape from a pair of difficult jams in the Braves' 8-5 win against Pittsburgh.

James allowed two one-out singles in both the first and second innings, but he eluded trouble in both frames to toss three scoreless innings. He struck out two and allowed four hits.

The progress with the slider hasn't been easy for James. Extra work in the bullpen has helped him feel more comfortable with the pitch, but it's taken nearly three years to get to this point.

"I think that's going to be a big pitch for me this year," James said. "Before, I didn't throw it as much. It's still my third pitch, but I've got a lot more confidence in it."

The added confidence has come with improved mechanics that have helped James to better control his slider. James proved how good his fastball and changeup were in 2006, going 11-4 with a 3.78 ERA as a rookie.

"I guess the reason why it's better is I'm just staying on top of it," James said. "I didn't have a lot of faith in it, so obviously if you've got no faith in it, you're not going to care. I was just frisbeeing it up there. Now I've got a lot more confidence in it, so I can keep it down in the zone."

With Mike Hampton's injury, James' contributions have gained in importance. That's a big change from a year ago when little was expected of the then-24-year-old James, who appeared in two games late in the 2005 season. Now, he bears the burden of being the team's No. 3 starter.

"Last year was a lot easier as far as the pressure thing goes," James said. "This year, it's my spot to lose."

Sweet revenge: Beating the Pirates felt a little sweeter for former Bucs Craig Wilson and Brent Lillibridge.

Wilson started the day rough, striking out against ex-teammate Zach Duke in each of his first two at-bats, part of five strikeouts for the Pirates' starter in four innings. However, Wilson singled in the sixth to score Edgar Renteria, capping a three-run inning for Atlanta (6-2-1).

Wilson spent parts of six seasons with Pittsburgh before being traded to New York last season. The Braves acquired Lillibridge in the January trade that also netted reliever Mike Gonzalez from Pittsburgh. The 23-year-old non-roster invitee recorded his first hit for the Braves on Friday, picking up a pinch-hit single in the sixth and going 1-for-3 with a run scored.

Braves bits: Infielder Willie Harris is 4-for-4 in stolen-base attempts. His total has Harris tied with Jose Reyes, last year's Major League leader, atop the Grapefruit League charts. ... Martin Prado, battling with Kelly Johnson for the second-base job, is batting .533 this spring, fifth in the Grapefruit League entering Friday. Johnson went 2-for-4 Friday against the Pirates, including a two-run homer off Masumi Kuwata that helped blow open the game in the sixth. Ryan Langerhans and Willy Aybar also homered. ... The Braves swept this spring's series from the Pirates, 2-0. Atlanta took the first game 5-4 in 10 innings on March 2. The two clubs split the regular-season series at three games apiece last year. ... Brayan Pena caught the entire game Friday, helping him ease back after two days away from the team to tend to his mother, who underwent surgery in Miami.

Up next: Newly signed Mark Redman will debut when Atlanta plays host to Toronto at 1:05 p.m. ET on Saturday at Disney. A 2006 All-Star with Kansas City, Redman impressed manager Bobby Cox when he went 2-1 with a 2.83 ERA against the Braves in 2003 with the World Series champion Florida Marlins.

Redman replaces Hampton, who was scheduled to start until sustaining a strained oblique. Macay McBride, Blanie Boyer and Joey Devine are also scheduled to pitch in the only Grapefruit League meeting between the two teams.