Kaat isn't a member but still enjoys Hall

COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. -- Jim Kaat always has had a special place in his life for the Hall of Fame, even though the reverse never has worked out.

He has a photo of his dad on the steps of the museum in 1947. "He went to Lefty Grove's induction," Kaat said. "I first came here as a college freshman in '56. I went to school with some fellows from Herkimer, N.Y., and I went on vacation here. The first induction I witnessed was Casey Stengel and Ted Williams in '66."

Kaat, whose 25-year career included a stint with the Yankees and a 283-237 record, is back again to honor former Twins teammate Bert Blyleven, who will be inducted Sunday. "I've been to a lot of these, for former teammates, and this one is really special for having seen Bert come up as a young kid and having seen him grow," Kaat said.

Kaat signed memorabilia a half-block from the Hall on Friday and some fans told him he ought to have his own plaque. Kaat characteristically accepted the compliments graciously. The thing is, he did have a borderline Hall of Fame career; he just never got to the high side of the border. So it's only natural to wonder if all these trips are bittersweet. "No, it's all sweet," he said. "It's such a special week to be here in Cooperstown."

He still looks fit and still enjoys baseball, especially the strong pitching in today's game. "I don't know if that's cyclical or just a lot of good young pitchers with great arms,'' he said. "It's almost gone on too long to say it's because of the [lack of] steroids. But it's good to see."

For Kaat, it was great to see Blyleven elected after a long wait. "In a perfect world, you could say, look, if you're a Hall of Famer, you're a Hall of Famer," he said. "But if you go back through the history of the voting, there were a lot of great players who took three or four years to get in. The main thing is now that he did get in."