Raines, Timothy
Baseball
b. Sept. 16, 1959, Sanford, FL
After playing briefly for the Montreal Expos in 1979 and 1980, the switch-hitting Raines established himself as one of the best leadoff men in baseball by batting .304, stealing a league-leading 71 bases, and scoring 61 runs in only 88 games in 1981 to be named rookie of the year.
Nicknamed "Rock" for his solid build, the 5-foot-8, 178-pound Raines led the league in stolen bases the next three years in a row, with 78 in 1982, 90 in 1983, and 75 in 1984, and he also led with 133 runs scored in 1983 and 38 doubles in 1984. He's the only player in major league history to steal 70 or more bases in four straight seasons.
Raines' .334 average in 1986 led the league in 1986 and he was the NL's top run scorer for a second time with 123 in 1987. However, a leg injury limited him to 109 games in 1988 and reduced his speed somewhat. Although he remained a threat to steal bases, he never approached his previous numbers after the injury.
Originally a second baseman, Raines has been an outfielder and occasionally a designated hitter since 1985. After the 1990 season, the Expos traded him to the Chicago White Sox. He spent five years in Chicago and then went to the New York Yankees for three years.
In January of 1999, Raines signed with the Oakland Athletics as a free agent. He suddenly gained 28 pounds in three days during July of that year and was diagnosed as having lupus. He missed the rest of the season while undergoing treatment and became a free agent in November.
Meanwhile, his son, Tim Raines Jr., was in the Baltimore Oriole farm system. Raines signed a minor-league contract with Montreal in 2000 and he returned to the majors the following season. On Oct. 3, 2001, he was traded to Baltimore and the next day he and his son became the second father-son combination to play together on the same team, after the Ken Griffeys. Tim Sr. played left field and his son was in center field.
Raines finished his career with the Florida Marlins in 2002, primarily as a pinch-hitter and pinch-runner.