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The Pirates are giving Michael Restovich the two things he wanted most this season -- a chance to play and a reason to go apartment hunting.

The 26-year-old outfielder is tired of living out of his suitcase. Since the final week of spring training, Restovich has played for four teams.

The Minnesota Twins waived him in the final week of March. He was claimed first by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, who cut him loose four days later, and then by the Colorado Rockies.

Last week, the Pirates got Restovich in exchange for a player to be named later.

"Hopefully, the carousel ride will end here," Restovich said.

The Pirates had Monday off, so Restovich and his wife, Erica, cruised the suburbs, searching for a place to finally call home.

"We're excited about just finding an apartment and having a place to hang up our clothes and maybe get a meal at night, instead of eating out all the time," he said.

"We'd love to be in the same place for, um ... well, we're looking to get past a month or two at this point. In Colorado, I knew I wasn't going to be around too long, so we just stayed in hotels."

When the Devil Rays picked him up, Restovich knew there was practically zero chance he would play in Tampa this summer. With their outfield already set, the Rays had hoped to sneak Restovich through waivers and send him to Class AAA as an insurance policy.

The Rockies were able to offer Restovich playing time -- but only while Dustan Mohr was out with a calf injury.

"They were honest with me," Restovich said. "Dustan Mohr is the guy they gave a million dollars to, so he's gonna play."

Restovich appeared in 14 games for Colorado. He batted .290 with two doubles, one home run and three RBI.

On April 28, Mohr was activated off the disabled list. Thirteen days later, Restovich was designated for assignment by the Rockies.

"I haven't been too frustrated by it. I've just been in tough situations," he said. "I think that had I been given a whole spring training with Tampa or Colorado, things may have been different. You can't judge a guy on just a few days."

The Twins gave Restovich seven seasons to prove himself after they chose him in the second round of the 1997 draft. It was a dream come true for Restovich, who grew up in Rochester, Minn.

"In a perfect world, I would've had an opportunity there, and I'd be playing in my home state the rest of my career," he said. "But that wasn't realistic."

Restovich bounced between the majors and minors over the past three years. In 61 games with the Twins, he batted .274 with three homers. Although he stole 19 bases in 2000 at Class A Fort Myers, he was never asked to run in his auditions with the Twins.

Minnesota's system is loaded with outfield talent. Last summer, other prospects began to overtake Restovich. When the Pirates were shopping pitcher Kris Benson, the Twins offered Restovich.

"I was expendable," Restovich said. "But I think the Pirates wanted a little bit more."

The Pirates asked for third baseman Michael Cuddyer, but the Twins balked. Eventually, Benson went to the New York Mets for third baseman Ty Wigginton.

Pirates general manager Dave Littlefield kept Restovich's name in the back of his mind throughout the offseason. When Craig Wilson was lost for two months with a hand injury, Littlefield jumped at the chance to get Restovich for next to nothing.

"We like him as a threat against left-handed pitching," Littlefield said. "He's got some power. He's done a fairly good job through the minor leagues, but really hasn't gotten an opportunity to get established at the major-league level. I think it's an upgrade for us for a right-handed bat with Craig being down."

Restovich played Friday in his first game since joining the Pirates, and went 0 for 2 with a walk. Tomorrow, he likely will be back in the lineup against Chicago Cubs lefty Glendon Rusch.

With another off day scheduled Thursday, Restovich and his wife could sign a lease someplace and start moving in.

"I don't think she necessarily knew she was getting into this when we got married two years ago," he said. "It'll be a year that we'll never forget."

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