Lake Buena Vista, Fla. — Jeff Francoeur spent much of his winter lifting weights and getting stronger. Those who watched batting practice Wednesday would probably say it was time well spent.

The right fielder hit several towering fly balls over the fence in the Braves' first full-squad workout of spring training at Champion Stadium, drawing attention around the batting cage and oohs, ahhs and applause from spectators.

"I feel good — a lot better" than last season, said Francoeur, who wanted to add muscle for improved home-run power and to help him get through the season without wearing down.

He hit one ball that crashed against the "C" in Champion more than halfway up the towering scoreboard above the left-field fence.

"And I didn't even feel like I 'oomphed' it," he said. "Just put a good swing on it."

Francoeur smiled as teammates acknowledged his work Wednesday, some shaking heads at the first-day display. There weren't many other balls hit out of the park, not unusual on the first day of full-squad workouts, especially with wind blowing in.

His longest shots were hit off bench coach Chino Cadahia, not against one of the Braves pitchers who threw earlier rounds of batting practice. Still, they were the kind of crowd-pleasing blasts that former Braves center fielder Andruw Jones used to hit in spring training.

The ball seemed to sound different coming off Francoeur's bat than other hitters.

"I think he's strong," general manager Frank Wren said, smiling at his understatement after watching Francoeur's batting practice standing a few feet away.

"I feel like I accomplished what I wanted this offseason," said Francoeur, who added 17 pounds, up to 239, while working out all winter at Competitive Edge Sports in an Atlanta suburb. Training partners included former college football players preparing for the NFL scouting combine.

He's using a 341/2-inch, 32-ounce bat this year, up from the 34-inch, 31 1/2-ounce bats in the past.

"I'm trying to take that next step to being a grown man," joked Francoeur, 24, who plans to lift weights four times a week in the regular season to maintain strength. Last year he said he stopped lifting after camp, which he now believes was a mistake that contributed to late-summer fatigue.

He raised his average from .260 in 2006 to .293 last season, but his homers slipped from 29 to 19.

"What would be ideal is to put the last two seasons together, [batting average] with the home runs and power," he said. "I feel like I can do it."

James' first session on mound pain-free

Chuck James took a positive step when he threw off the mound without shoulder pain Wednesday, but Wren wasn't sure the left-hander would be ready to compete for an opening-day roster spot.

"It's probably too early to speculate on that," Wren said after James threw five minutes in his first mound session since a slight rotator-cuff tear was diagnosed in October (surgery wasn't required). "We'll see how the next couple of weeks go, see if he can get out there and get innings built up."

James has won 11 games in each of his first two seasons, but struggled with long balls and mid-innings exits last season. Even if healthy, he's not assured of a spot in the rotation, with serious competition expected from promising rookie Jair Jurrjens, lefty Jo-Jo Reyes and Jeff Bennett.

James, 26, gave up 32 homers in 161 1/3 innings last season, the highest rate per nine innings (1.68) by any major leaguer who pitched at least 160. He had a 6.02 ERA and 15 homers allowed in 44 2/3 innings over his final nine starts, with a 15-day disabled list stint for a sore shoulder.

Since moving to the starting rotation on June 25, 2006, James has allowed 50 homers in 269 innings over 48 starts. No pitcher with at least 150 innings in that period has a higher home-run ratio.