Whiteside, Haines await news on their baseball fate

Charleston High grad Matt Whiteside is among a long list of minor league free agents awaiting new deals. His assessment from LoneStarBall.com, a blog site for the Rangers team that drafted him in the 25th round in 1990:

"Matt Whiteside -- 39 years old, and still hanging in there, years after sucking in the Ranger pen. Whiteside was on the Rangers at the same time as Nolan Ryan, John Cangelosi, Dickie Thon, and Monty Farris. And he's still around ... "

Whiteside spent the past season with the Pirates' Triple-A team in Indianapolis. He was 2-0 with a 1.69 ERA.

Also on the free agent list: Tally Haines, a Cape Girardeau Central and Southeast grad who spent the past season with the Reading Phillies. He was 5-2 with a 3.67 ERA.