MESA, Ariz. (AP) -Cubs starter Sean Marshall has been trying to stick to the advice given to him by Greg Maddux in 2006.

He did a pretty good job of it Tuesday, pitching three perfect innings in Chicago's 6-4 win over the Oakland Athletics.

``I still remember a lot of the things he was telling me about first pitch strikes, and getting that fastball down and away early and often,' Marshall said.

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Marshall, manager Lou Piniella's top candidate for the fifth spot in the Chicago rotation, was the first Cubs pitcher to go three innings this spring.

``I didn't get ahead of a lot of hitters, but I made some pitches when I was a little behind in the count,' Marshall said. ``Overall, I thought it was a pretty good day. It was only three innings but it was a good stretch out.'

Marshall is a 6-foot-7, 205-pounder that made the Cubs rotation out of the 2006 season, crossing paths with Maddux before he was dealt to the Los Angeles Dodgers at the trade deadline.

``(Current Cub starter Ryan) Dempster and Maddux have always told me the 200-innings mark for starters is a really good mark to shoot for,' Marshall said. ``So I am shooting for 200 plus innings, and hopefully a lot of quality innings.'

The one hesitation Piniella has had in naming Marshall, besides competition from Jeff Samardzija, Chad Gaudin and Aaron Heilman, is the fact that he has never thrown more than 126 innings in a season.

Piniella, however, was more than impressed with Marshall in his latest outing.

`` I tell you what he has gotten stronger and he is throwing with a little more velocity,' Piniella said. ``He has as good as a curveball as I've seen all spring training. He had a really good year for us last year. He really did. He is throwing the ball as well as anybody in camp. His stuff is crisp.'

In his first two seasons, 43 of his 45 games came as a starter, going 13-17 with a 4.83 ERA. Then in 2008, he made just seven starts in 34 appearances.

Marshall and the rest of the Cubs staff was backed by three home runs as Alfonso Soriano, Jake Fox and Aramis Ramirez, who had been 0-for-8 this spring, all went deep.

Cubs right-handed reliever Luis Vizcaino, who is expected to make the club as a reliever, saw his first action of the spring after getting a late start because of visa problems and struck out one on an inning.

Former Cubs pithcer Sean Gallagher gave up a homer to Soriano on his first pitch.

``As soon as the pitch left my hand I was like he's swinging,' Gallagher said. ``It's either at the fence or it is over. I've watched the guy play for a long time and I understand his swing.'

Gallagher allowed three hits with a walk in two innings. He said he was leaving the ball too high in the strike zone.

``You can't leave the ball up, especially against big league hitters,' he said. ``I had better command today, but it was a littler higher than I would've liked. Next time I have to work on getting down in the zone.'

Eight different A's had hits. Center fielder Rajai Davis dhad a two-run single off Mike Stanton in the fifth inning.