MILWAUKEE -- Trevor Hoffman made a strong showing in his first year as a Hall of Fame candidate, but the former saves king will have to wait for a call to Cooperstown.
Hoffman led a quartet of players with Brewers ties in the Hall of Fame balloting results that were unveiled Wednesday by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. The former closer who finished his career in Milwaukee appeared on 67.3 percent of returned ballots, just shy of the 75 percent necessary for induction.
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The BBWAA elected two players, outfielder Ken Griffey Jr. and catcher Mike Piazza, to the Class of 2016. Griffey received a record 99.3 percent of the vote, appearing on all but three ballots.
"First and foremost, I want to congratulate Ken Griffey Jr. and Mike Piazza," Hoffman said in a statement released by the Padres. "This is a class of tremendous players and people, both deserving of the title Hall of Famer.
"While the news today wasn't the news I was hoping for, I am humbled and honored to have been on the ballot and in the conversation with players of this caliber. If and when the day comes that I receive the ultimate honor in our game, I look forward to sharing it with my family, friends, teammates, the Padres organization, and most importantly, the fans."

Hoffman was a Padre for 16 of his 18 Major League seasons, but his career began in Miami and ended in Milwaukee. He was an All-Star for the Brewers in 2009, when Hoffman, then baseball's all-time saves leader, recorded 37 saves and posted a 1.83 ERA in his age-41 season. On Sept. 7, 2010, at Miller Park, Hoffman became the first player to reach 600 saves, capping an otherwise difficult season marred by a shoulder injury.
He will remain on the ballot next year, as will former Brewers first-round Draft pick Gary Sheffield, who appeared on 11.6 percent of ballots. Sheffield played 22 big league seasons and finished with 509 home runs.
Two other former Brewers -- Jim Edmonds (2.5 percent) and Jason Kendall (0.5 percent) -- will not appear on future ballots because they received less than 5 percent of the vote.