Raines pushes past 90 percent in updated Hall of Fame voting

"Rock" looks to be a lock for Cooperstown.

Tim Raines, the former big-league outfielder who played 11 years with the Montreal Expos before stints with the Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, Baltimore Orioles, and Florida Marlins, has seen his Hall of Fame chances skyrocket in his final year of eligibility.

Raines' name has been ticked on 121 out of 134 (90.3 percent) Hall of Fame ballots, according to Ryan Thibodaux's Hall of Fame tracker. The early tally is currently the second-highest amount of votes in this year's class, behind only former Houston Astros infielder Jeff Bagwell, who has been on 93.2 percent of ballots.

Raines nearly cracked the Hall earlier in 2016, but fell just short of the required 75 percent of votes, finishing at 69.8. Campaigns from prominent members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America, however, including CBS Sports' Jonah Keri, seem to have persuaded eligible voters to give Raines one last chance at Cooperstown.

The 23-year veteran's case isn't without merit, either. In nine seasons with the Expos from 1979-90, Raines was named an All-Star seven times, and finished in the top 10 in MVP voting on three occasions, including an impressive 1983 season when he slashed .298/.393/.429 with 90 stolen bases and a league-best 133 runs scored in 156 games.

While his speed on the basepaths dropped off later in his playing days, the former left fielder's 808 stolen bases in 954 tries remains the highest stolen-base percentage in MLB history at 84.7 percent (among players with at least 400 attempts). His batting numbers remained consistent throughout his career as well, as he retired in 2002 with a .294/.385/.425 career slash line.