Hall of Fame Case: Tim Raines

The candidate we'll look at today is Tim "Rock" Raines, who played for the Monteal Expos, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, Oakland A's, Baltimore Orioles, and Florida Marlins during a lengthy career that spanned 23 seasons. He will be first eligible for election into the Hall of Fame in 2008. In this article, we'll look at the pros and cons of Raines' Hall of Fame case, and compare him to other similar players, some of whom are already in the Hall of Fame.

Below is a look at Raines' career numbers:




G
AB
R
H
2b
3b
HR
RBI
SB
CS
BB
SO
BA
OBP
SLG


2502
8872
1571
2605
430
113
170
980
808
146
1330
817
.294
.385


.425




Career Overview

Raines' long career can be broken more or less into five sections. After two seasons that totaled only 20 games and 20 at bats at ages 19 and 20, Raines began a seven year stretch in which he put up dominant numbers. During that span, from 1981 to 1987, he hit .298 or better in 6 of the seasons, including 3 seasons of .320 or higher and 2 seasons in which he hit over .330. His on base percentage was below .390 only once during those seasons. He also stole over 70 bases in 6 of those 7 seasons, including one season of 90 steals. He also hit over 30 doubles in every year except the strike shortened 1981 seasons, and had 7 or more triples in all seven seasons. He made seven all star appearances during this stretch. He won a batting title in 1986, also leading the league in OBP that season on the way to a silver slugger award. He led the league in stolen bases four times (and finished in the top three every season), runs scored twice, and doubles once. During these years, Raines put up the dominant numbers that make him a potential hall of famer.