Michigan Native Jim Kaat Falls Short Of Baseball Hall Of Fame

West Michigan native and former Minnesota Twins standout pitcher Jim Kaat came up just two votes shy of the Hall of Fame on Sunday, garnering 10 out of 16 votes from the Veterans Committee, via MLive.com.

Kaat won 283 games and 16 Gold Gloves over the course of 25 major league seasons, was a three-time All-Star and led the league in victories with 25 in 1966. But he never won a Cy Young Award, and this marks the third time that Kaat has come up exactly two votes shy of the required 75 % necessary from the Veterans Committee.

Still, the southpaw took the news gracefully.

"If I were running for president, 51 percent would have been enough," the former Minnesota Twins pitcher said by phone. "But it's tougher to get into the Hall of Fame, and it should be."

Former Chicago Cubs third baseman Ron Santo was the only player elected to the Hall of Fame on Sunday by the Golden Era committee, a group of 16 that includes Hall of Fame players, as well as baseball executives and veteran reporters. Kaat finished second behind Santo in this year's voting.

Former Tigers legend Al Kaline was among those who voted on Kaat, among nine other candidates, and former Twins outfielder Tony Oliva, Kaat's Minnesota teammate between 1962-73, was also on the ballot but did not make the cut, receiving eight votes.

In addition to spending 15 years with the Twins, Kaat also pitched for the Washington Senators, Chicago White Sox, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Yankees and St. Louis Cardinals.