Pittsburgh, PA --Atlanta's Chuck James held the slumping
Pittsburgh Pirates hitless until Jason Bay singled in the seventh,
and Scott Thorman homered twice in leading the Braves to a 9-to-2
victory tonight that extended their winning streak to five.
James (4-3), who has never thrown a complete game in 26 major
league starts, allowed just one hit in seven innings.
Pittsburgh, held to three runs or fewer in 19 of 35 games, held
a pregame meeting to address hitting problems, then didn't have
anything resembling a hit until Bay lined a single into left field
on a 1-and-0 pitch with one out in the seventh. The Pirates didn't
have a baserunner until James walked Jose Bautista and Jack Wilson
in succession starting the sixth, and never advanced a runner past
second until Jack Wilson's R-B-I double keyed a two-run eighth
against reliever Chad Paronto.