ATLANTA (AP) -- Terry Mulholland liked this complete game a lot more than his previous one three years ago.

Mulholland pitched Atlanta's first complete game of the season, and Andres Galarraga hit a go-ahead single in the sixth inning to lead the Atlanta Braves to their fifth straight victory, 6-2 over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday night.

	Mulholland

Mulholland (2-2) allowed eight hits, two walks and struck out three in his first complete game since losing 3-0 to the White Sox on June 18, 1997. Mulholland, who was with the Cubs in 1997, has 46 career complete games.

"That one was not as much fun," said Mulholland, who lowered his ERA to 5.33 with his second straight strong outing after being hammered in his first two starts of the season for 12 earned runs in 8 1/3 innings.

"I was just pitching terrible baseball in those first two starts. Plain and simple," he said.

Mulholland needed just 107 pitches to finish off the Pirates,

"I guess I'm never really surprised with what Mulholland does, but I was impressed with the way he threw," Pittsburgh manager Gene Lamont said.

Galarraga, who hit a pair of home runs and drove in four runs in Thursday night's 6-4 victory over Philadelphia, singled to left to score Chipper Jones to snap a 2-2 tie in the sixth off reliever Mike Garcia (0-1).

"He seems to be always getting the big hit," Cox of Galarraga, who is coming back after missing last season with cancer in his lower back. "It never stops. It's an incredible story."

Jones opened the sixth with a walk and took second on a single by Brian Jordan. Jordan took third on Galarraga's hit and scored on a sacrifice fly by Javy Lopez.

The Braves added two more runs in the seventh on RBI singles by Quilvio Veras and Andruw Jones. Veras went 3-for-3 with a walk and two RBI.

The Pirates had tied it at 2 in the sixth on a solo home run by Aramis Ramirez, who had been in a 1-for-22 slump before hitting an 0-1 pitch from Mulholland into the left-field stands.

The Braves had gone ahead 2-1 in the fifth on an RBI single by Veras off Pittsburgh starter Jose Parra. Atlanta's first run came on a run-scoring single by Chipper Jones in the first.

Parra allowed two runs and five hits in five innings with seven strikeouts.

"I thought he could give us five innings. He gave us everything he had," Lamont said.

Pittsburgh's first run came in the second on an RBI single by Jason Kendall, who has hit in eight straight games.

Game notes
Pittsburgh has lost four of five. ... LHP Steve Avery, coming back from offseason shoulder surgery, makes his third rehab start Saturday. He'll pitch for the Braves' Greenville Double-A club against Mobile. ... Parra, 27, was recalled Thursday from Triple-A Nashville. His last appearance in the majors was Sept. 29, 1996 with Minnesota. He pitched in Korea in 1998 and in Japan last season. ... The Pirates have lost six straight at Turner Field and are 1-9 in their last 10 games in Atlanta.