The game: On the surface, it looked as if Matt Morris had another awful outing in the Pirates' 13-4 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays yesterday at Progress Energy Park in St. Petersburg, Fla.

But the reality ...

"Unreal," Morris said. "That's the best I've felt all spring, and ... well, it's all about the results, I guess."

Morris, who entered with a 9.00 ERA, raised that to 9.64 after giving up eight runs on 10 hits while falling one out short of his six scheduled innings. That includes a solo home run by Eric Hinske in the second and a three-run shot by Carlos Pena in the fifth.

But a closer look at that latter inning offers a different view: Akinori Iwamura put down a bunt single to initiate the rally. Carl Crawford's grounder to second was booted by Luis Rivas. And Pena's high fly to left appeared harmless enough that Jason Bay initially stood still.

"Can of corn," Bay called the ball off the bat.

The can was carried by 25-mph wind, though, and sailed over the fence for a 5-2 Tampa Bay lead.

Those occurrences and other oddities aside, Morris showed far better command of all pitches, notably a downward fastball that drew eight ground-ball outs, two infield singles and many off-balance swings. Moreover, he continued to follow pitching coach Jeff Andrews' instructions to work on the changeup he is adding to his repertoire this spring.

"I thought Matt threw much, much better than it shows," manager John Russell said. "He was hitting his spots, inside and outside. In that way, I thought it was a nice outing."

"I want the results to be there," Morris said. "Don't get me wrong. I want everyone to know there's nothing to be worried about. But this was better than where I've been."

Today: The Pirates' Ian Snell will make his final start of the spring against the Minnesota Twins' Kevin Slowey, 1:05 p.m. in Bradenton, Fla.

Camp roster: 37, with 20 pitchers, two catchers, nine infielders and six outfielders. More cuts are coming today, though not necessarily in a singular, great wave.

"It's crunch time," Russell said.

One point of urgency: If the Pirates do not add reliever Jaret Wright to the 25-man roster by today, he can declare free agency.

Injury update: Outfielder Nate McLouth (strep throat) missed a third consecutive game but was in full health yesterday and will rejoin the lineup today.

Battle lines: Nyjer Morgan, favored but hardly cemented ahead of Kevin Thompson for the last outfield spot, found exactly what he sought yesterday with a single and double -- each to the opposite field -- in four at-bats.

His average is still just .232, but that was much more in line with what hitting coach Don Long has been stressing in terms of Morgan keeping his head still and following through to left.

"Felt a lot better," Morgan said.

On another front, Franquelis Osoria, a virtual lock for the bullpen, lost his 0.00 ERA in a big way by giving up five runs in the seventh inning. He had allowed only two hits all spring but the Rays had five, including a two-run home run by Reid Brignac.

"Not every game can be good," Osoria said, managing a small smile.

Osoria, like Morris, was under orders to work on new pitches, a changeup and slider in his case. But the true culprit was that his sinker did just about everything but sink.

Fun in the sun: There was no fun for Paulino on this day.

In addition to that dropped popup, he made two poor throws: One came on a steal attempt of third that should have been a routine out but resulted in Jose Bautista leaping to corral it. The other came on an attempted 5-2-3 double play with the bases loaded. Paulino's throw to first sailed into right field and gave up two runs.

The Pirates still consider Paulino their No. 1 catcher, but management is pleased with Ryan Doumit's defensive progress this spring.

Paulino also went 0 for 2 with a strikeout at the plate, dropping his average to .184. Doumit's recent surge, including a single in three at-bats yesterday, has him at .275.

Inside pitch: The Pirates will face Tom Glavine in their season opener Monday, according to a report on the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Web site last night. John Smoltz had been set for the game, which will be the Braves' second of the season after a one-game trip to Washington, but he has muscle soreness between his neck and shoulder and is expected to go on the disabled list.

Mike Hampton and rookie Jair Jurrjens will pitch the other two games of the series, though the order has not been determined.

Countdown to Atlanta: 6 days