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On Monday, the Minnesota Twins announced the recipients of the Harmon Killebrew Awards for Community Service. The award is handed out by each of the Twins four full-season affiliates to a player who represents the affiliate, the Twins and the work of legendary Harmon Killebrew and his kindness in the community. Image courtesy of Steve Buhr, Twins Daily (L to R: David Banuelos, Frank Nigro, Alex Isola, Bradley Hanner, Noah Cardenas) When Harmon Killebrew passed away in 2011, the Twins developed the Killebrew Award for Outstanding Community Service. The players are nominated by each affiliate's general manager based on how much the players do in the community, whether it is reading for kids at school or participating in special camps or visiting hospitals. St. Paul Saints (Catchers David Banuelos and Frank Nigro) Banuelos was the Killebrew Award winner in 2018 when he played with the Kernels as well. In 2022, the Saints recognized him for his work at each of the team's kid baseball camps. He took a strong leadership role in those camps, making sure that the kids were having fun and getting to interact with all the kids. He also participated in the team's annual ACES bowling event. Banuelos has been in big-league spring training the past few years because he is fantastic behind the plate. While he hit just .204, he added seven doubles and eight home runs in 55 games. The Saints referred to Frank Nigro as an "unsung hero" involved in community service initiatives. When he was in St. Paul, he was always willing to volunteer his time. He encouraged kids as they headed back to school this fall with a video message. He also spent time visiting kids in the hospital. Nigro, 25, spent time in the FCL, at Ft. Myers, in Cedar Rapids, and with the Saints, and he had just 34 at-bats in 18 games played. Wichita Wind Surge (Catcher/First Baseman Alex Isola) Alex Isola is also now a two-time Killebrew Award recipient. He won the award in 2021 with the Kernels. The Wind Surge recognized Isola for being a "strong advocate for the team, its fans and the entire Wichita community." Isola went to the team's McConnell Air Force Base Nose Art Ceremony. He also helped the team announce their alternate identities, the Turbo Tubs and the Tumba Vacas. He was always signing autographs for Twins before and after home games. Isola is currently playing in the final week of the Arizona Fall League. The 24-year-old played in 58 games for the Surge this year and hit .286 with nine doubles, 10 homers and 40 RBI. He missed nearly two months with an injury. Cedar Rapids Kernels (RHP Bradley Hanner) Brad Hanner was the Kernels choice for the Killebrew Award as he kept busy volunteering throughout the 2022 season. He was a "standout" during the Twins' organization-wide Week of Service. He assembled boxes at the local Meals on Wheels location to help pre-package meals. He brought breakfast to the elderly several mornings with his host family. The 23-year-old went above and beyond, always spending talking to the fans and signing autographs. Hanner was one of the Kernels top bullpen arms, especially in the first half. In 39 games, he went 7-4 with a 4.60 ERA. In 58 2/3 innings, he had 65 strikeouts. Ft. Myers Mighty Mussels (Catcher Noah Cardenas) Noah Cardenas spent his first full professional season with the Mighty Mussels. The team's front office recognized Cardenas for "his fantastic participation and engagement in community events during the season." He was "always courteous to fans, employees, and community members." The 23-year-old backstop hit .261 with 18 doubles and nine home runs. He also walked 73 times and walked 70 times. Past Killebrew Award Winners 2011: Rochester: Kyle Gibson, New Britain: Bobby Lanigan, Ft. Myers: Reggie Williams, Beloit: Ryan O'Rourke. 2012: Rochester: JR Towles, New Britain: Shawn Roof, Ft. Myers: Andy Leer, Beloit: Corey Williams. 2013: Rochester: Brian Dinkelman, New Britain: Dan Rohlfing, Ft. Myers: Stephen Wickens, Beloit: Niko Goodrum. 2014: Rochester: Logan Darnell, New Britain: Tony Thomas, Ft. Myers: Tim Shibuya, Cedar Rapids: Tanner Vavra. 2015: Rochester: Logan Darnell, Chattanooga: Tim Shibuya, Ft. Myers: Tanner Vavra, Cedar Rapids: Jared Wilson. 2016: Rochester: Logan Darnell, Chattanooga: David Hurlbut, Ft. Myers: Trey Vavra, Cedar Rapids: Nelson Molina. 2017: Rochester: DJ Baxendale, Chattanooga: Travis Harrison, Ft. Myers: Kevin Garcia, Cedar Rapids: Hector Lujan. 2018: Rochester: Jake Reed, Chattanooga: Chris Paul, Ft. Myers: Tyler Wells, Cedar Rapids: David Banuelos. 2019: Rochester: Jake Reed, Pensacola: Hector Lujan, Ft. Myers: Calvin Faucher, Cedar Rapids: Brian Rapp. 2021: St. Paul: Sherman Johnson, Wichita: Hector Lujan, Cedar Rapids: Alex Isola, Ft. Myers: Jeferson Morales. View full article

The Kernels walked it off thanks to an unlikely hero and the Saints got the last laugh in an offensive shootout against Dayton. Read about all the action from the across the farm on Sunday! TRANSACTIONS No transactions across the organization today! SAINTS SENTINEL St Paul 11, Columbus 10 Box Score Despite losing Alex Kirilloff to the parent club a few days ago, the St. Paul offense didn't miss a beat on Sunday afternoon. A monster day at the plate, the Saints used 12 hits to plate 11 runs and sneak past the Clippers in a Father's Day shootout in Columbus. The scoring wasn't isolated; St. Paul scored in six of nine innings and touted multi-run frames in the first, second, third, fifth, and seventh innings. Even better, the scoring didn't come from one player. Led by a four-hit showing from Mark Contreras, seven Saints recorded hits and five tallied RBI on the day. Michael Helman and Mark Contreras got the party started in the top of the first with a pair of key hits to put the Saints on the board. With Caleb Hamilton on the pond, Helman laced a single to the first run of the game. Since being promoted to Triple-A at the end of May, Helman has been red hot, hitting safely in seven of his last eight games and touting a team-leading .423 batting average. Just two batters later, Contreras notched his first of four singles of the day to score Helman (who advanced to second on a fielding error) to put the Saints up 2-0. It was rinse and repeat for St. Paul in the second and third inning. Following John Andreoli walk and Elliot Soto double (9), Spencer Steer smothered a liner to center-field to score both runners and double the lead. Curtis Terry kicked off the third inning with a solo homer (7) to left and was followed by a pair of singles from Contreras and Jermaine Palacios. Contreras would eventually score thanks to a double-play groundout from Roy Morales. And while the RBI didn't count for Morales, he would score two runners in the fifth inning on a beautifully struck double that clipped the third-base bag. Given the run support, St. Paul starter Aaron Sanchez was solid on the day, pitching 4 1/3 innings of three-run (two earned), five-hit ball while striking out four and walking two. Austin Schulfer cleaned up the final two outs of the fifth inning and earned the win on the day for St. Paul. In what looked like a blowout, the Clippers mounted a massive seventh inning off of St. Paul reliever Jake Faria. In 1 2/3 innings, Faria allowed six runs on four hits, including a grand slam. Luckily for the Saints, Mark Contreras added an insurance run in the top of the eighth with an RBI single that scored Curtis Terry. Sunday's Father's Day win was especially special for Saints skipper Toby Gardenhire. On paternity leave for the birth of his first child Bodie, Sunday marked Gardenhire's 100th win as manager of the St. Paul Saints. Congrats to Toby on the feat but more importantly, to him and his wife Sarah and the birth of their first child! WIND SURGE WISDOM Tulsa 3, Wichita 2 (10) Box Score Despite a solid pitching performance from the Wichita staff, the Wind Surge fell just short in an extra-inning heartbreaker to Tulsa. Wichita outhit the Drillers but failed to convert, leaving 12 men on base and going 2-for-16 with runners in scoring position. Cole Sturgeon and Edouard Julien both tallied multi-hit games and Sturgeon recorded one of Wichita's two RBI on the day. With two outs in the third, Sturgeon knocked a single to center field to score Matt Wallner from second and put the Surge on the board. Wichita plated its only other run in the sixth inning when Deshawn Keirsey Jr. scored from third on a groundout from Anthony Prato. Wichita starting pitcher Casey Legumina was solid through 4 2/3 innings, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks while striking out two. Limiting the damage himself, the Surge bullpen did everything they could to follow Legumina's adequate outing. Andrew Cabezas pitched two perfect innings with three strikeouts and was followed by 2 1/3 scoreless innings from Denny Bentley and Jordon Gore. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, Dayton 3 Box Score Assigned from the FCL Twins to Cedar Rapids on Friday, there's a good chance most Twins fans don't know the name Frank Nigro. They should now. Knotted at three in the bottom of the ninth, Nigro punched a 2-2 pitch to right field to score Kennie Taylor and walk the Kernels off to a league-leading 41-22 record. In his first game with Cedar Rapids, Nigro's walk-off single would have sufficed just fine on its own. Yet on top of the game-winner, Nigro laced a single in the second inning and was one of two Cedar Rapids players to record a multi-hit game. The Kernels scored their first run in the first inning. Following an Alerick Soularie double (6), Yunior Severino reached out a fielding error that allowed Soularie to score from second. The Kernels would strike again in the second thanks to an RBI single from Kyler Mack that scored Kennie Tayor. After a few innings of silence, Alerick Soularie notched his second hit of the game in the seventh with an RBI single that scored Taylor. The Cedar Rapids pitching staff was stellar from the game's first pitch to its last. Starter Sean Mooney was dominant through five, striking out six while allowing just two runs on five hits. The combo of Bobby Milacki and Matthew Swain took the bulk of relief, allowing just one run on three hits while striking out a combined four batters through 3 2/3 innings. Ryan Shreve (W, 1-0) pitched the final out for the Kernels and earned his first win of the year. MUSSEL MATTERS CANCELLED Turns out it rains (a lot) in Florida. Due to inclement weather, Sunday's game was canceled. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day: Mark Contreras (St. Paul)- 4-for-4, 3 R, 2 RBI, BB Pitcher of the Day: Sean Mooney (Cedar Rapids)- 5.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 6 K, 2 BB PROSPECT SUMMARY Take a look at how our Twins Daily Top 20 Prospects did today! For a weekly recap of prospects and the entire farm system, check out Seth's Minor League Week in Review! Here’s a look at how the current Twins Daily Top 20 performed: #7 - Spencer Steer (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, 3 RBI, 3 K #15 - Matt Wallner (Wichita) - 0-for-2, R, 2 BB, 2 K #16 - Edouard Julien (Wichita) - 2-for-5, K UP NEXT Mondays are off for minor leaguers, get prepared for a full slate of games on Tuesday! View full article

The Minnesota Twins got smoked in Arizona on Father's Day. Down in the minors, Cedar Rapids won on a walk-off in another big game from both Alerick Soularie and Sean Mooney. That and more in tonight's system recap. View full video