JUPITER, Fla. (AP) – Matt Morris rebounded from a shaky start by working four innings Tuesday in the St. Louis Cardinals’ 4-3 loss to the Boston Red Sox.

Morris, the Cardinal’s probable opening-day starter, gave up a two-run homer in the first to David Ortiz, then allowed only two more runners during his last three innings. On Friday, he gave up nine runs and nine hits in 1 2-3 innings against the New York Mets.

“I don’t feel any different, it’s just that the results were better,” Morris said. “But it is nice. I can take a deep breath and I don’t have to worry so much. I can continue to build off that.”

Morris, who had four strikeouts and one walk, was too pumped up for his spring debut.

“I understand there’s concern … “Oh no, what’s going on?”‘ Morris said. “I felt good the other day, I was just a little excited, and that’s been my problem since I was 12.”

Byung-Hyun Kim made his second start of the spring for the Red Sox and was pulled after 2 1-3 innings instead of three because of a high pitch count. He allowed two runs, three hits and two walks, striking out two.

Kim has had tightness in his back and had trouble getting loose in the first inning.

“But after that, it was no problem,” he said through a translator.

Boston took a 4-3 lead in the seventh on left fielder Ray Lankford’s error on a deep fly hit by Terry Shumpert off Josh Pearce. Brian Daubach added an RBI single in the fifth.

Albert Pujols had a sacrifice fly and Scott Rolen had an RBI single in the first for the Cardinals. Kerry Robinson added a run-scoring single in the seventh.

AP-ES-03-10-04 1530EST