Neil Walker went 4-for-4 with a homer to help Altoona to a 6-2 win over Portland before 3,109 fans Tuesday. The prized third base prospect no longer has to deal with the rigors of catching, which he says could be a big reason for his solid start at the plate.

``From a confidence standpoint it's enormous,'' Walker, hitting .283 and tied for the team lead with five homers, said. ``I've never been one to start off good. Every single year it's been a struggle this first month and a half, two months of the season.''

Not this season.

Many people wondered how Walker would adjust defensively at third base, but another component of his switch didn't draw much attention in the preseason.

``It's been helpful that I haven't been catching,'' Walker said. ``It's a very, very big thing.''

Some nights, Walker said catching would ``really take a toll'' in his third and fourth at-bats.

``It was almost to the point where you're thinking, 'I just want to get this over with,' so you swing at the first pitch,'' he said. ``If I get a hit, great. If I don't, who cares? That hasn't been the case this year.''

Walker, the first Altoona player with four hits in a game this season, homered leading off the fifth inning to ignite a four-run rally that erased a 2-0 deficit. The long ball barely cleared the wall in left field, but as Walker pointed out, getting away from catching seems to be helping him drive the ball better.

``The one thing I've noticed from years past, when catching, I'd hit balls and they'd be off the wall, caught at the warning track, bounce at the warning track,'' Walker said. ``This year, the five home runs that I have, they haven't been bombs, but they have kind of snuck out.

``You wonder if it would be any different if I was catching.''