PITTSBURGH - Pittsburgh Pirates left-hander Joe Beimel is hoping a sidearm delivery will help him have more success against left-handed batters this year.

Beimel continued to experiment with the new throwing motion Sunday when he pitched batting practice for the second time this spring.

"I felt like my pitches had a lot better movement and I had a better downward plane," Beimel said. "I'm still trying to find the right spin on my slider. It's pretty inconsistent right now and I'm fine-tuning it."

The suggestion was made by pitching coach Spin Williams, who watched Beimel struggle in the second half of the past two seasons. Beimel had a 7.77 ERA after the All-Star break last year and 6.82 ERA in the second half of the 2002 season.

Williams thought left-handed hitters were becoming too familiar with Beimel's conventional over-the-top motion.

"I thought it was important to give him more weapons to get lefties out," Williams said. "It seems like he has a couple of good months and then his numbers fall off. He really needs something else to give another look to the lefties that he's faced a couple of times."

Left-handed hitters batted .308 against Beimel last season, and the NL Central includes some of the best lefties in the league, including Jim Edmonds, Ken Griffey Jr., Adam Dunn, Sean Casey, Geoff Jenkins and Scott Podsednik. Over a five-day span in August, Beimel gave up game-winning, three-run homers to Edmonds and Podsednik.

"After the season I had, I was willing to try something new," Beimel said.

Beimel said he will throw his fastball and slider from the sidearm slot while occasionally mixing in his changeup.

"In the minors, I was taught that it was a no-no to throw lefties a changeup," Beimel said. "But I've seen some guys have success like (Mike) Remlinger and (Tom) Glavine. I'll mess with it this spring and see if I can do it."

The new motion isn't totally foreign to Beimel. He spent two and a half years in the bullpen with left-hander Scott Sauerbeck, who occasionally used a sidearm motion.

"I don't want him to be Scott Sauerbeck by any means," Williams said. "This is just one thing to try to get Joe better."

Notes:

The Pirates signed pitcher John Van Benschoten and first baseman Carlos Rivera to one-year contracts Sunday. There are 12 unsigned players on the 40-man roster. ... Left fielder Jason Bay (right shoulder surgery) took 75 swings of soft-toss batting practice Sunday. ... Non-roster infielder Donaldo Mendez continues to be absent from camp due to visa issues. The Pirates are not certain when he will report.