Image courtesy of © Malcolm Emmons-Imagn Images
The Twins have been in Minnesota for about 65 years. One of the players who came to Minnesota from Washington was Harmon Killebrew. When people attempt to create a list of the top players in the team’s history, Killebrew remains at the top of that list. When looking at the Twins record book, a large percentage of categories have Killebrew’s name right at the top.
“Killer” played a total of 22 seasons in the big leagues. He spent parts of seven seasons with the Senators and then spent the 1961 through 1974 in a Twins uniform. He ended his career with a season with the Royals. He played in the 1965 World Series when the Twins lost in seven games to the Dodgers. He hit 573 home runs. He won an MVP (1969). He finished second once, third once, and fourth two times. He played in 13 All Star games. He led the league in home runs six times and in RBI three times. He also led the league in walks four times and had seven seasons in which he walked at least 100 times.
Inexplicably, it took the Baseball Writers four ballots to vote him into the Hall of Fame, an honor he finally received in 1984.
Harmon Killebrew was a great baseball player, but those who knew him will always talk about how kind he was and how much he did for people in the community.
Following his career, he was involved in several endeavors. He spent time in the ‘80s as a color analyst on broadcasts. He was active in the Twins community and at events.
He grew up in Payette, Idaho. In 2011, at the age of 74, he passed away due to cancer in 2011. The Twins decided to continue the Killebrew legacy of community work by creating the Harmon Killebrew Award for Community Service. Each season, the organization recognizes one player from each of the Twins four full-season affiliates. Each affiliate’s General Manager nominates players and lets the organization know what type of community work the players have done.
Recently, the Twins announced their 2025 Killebrew Award winners.
St. Paul Saints: C Noah Cardenas
Noah Cardenas has been doing good in his communities for many years. In fact, he received the Killebrew Award in 2002 at Fort Myers and in 2023 in Cedar Rapids.
Cardenas, who turned 26 during the season’s final month, began the 2025 season in Wichita. In 30 games, he was hitting .257/.409/.416 (.825) with seven doubles and three home runs. In mid-June, he earned his promotion to St. Paul. In 39 games, he hit .234/.364/.458 (.822) with three doubles and seven RBI.
He was remarkably consistent with the bat. Just look at the consistency in the OPS. Defensively, he’s always been consistently strong behind the plate. The UCLA product has also been very consistent off the field. He joined the Saints on June 10th, and he happily spent a ton of time in the community right away, consistently volunteering for pretty much anything.
Specifically, he made four visits to the Children’s Hospital Star Studio. He visited patients in their rooms. He participated in a couple of baseball camps. He volunteered at Catholic Charities and served meals to the less fortunate. That wasn’t set up by the Saints. He did it on his own, just because he wants to serve people.
Over his pro career (as evidenced through these awards), he has helped a lot of people, signed a lot of autographs, and put a lot of smiles on the faces of fans and especially the kids who get to chat with him.
Wichita Wind Surge: RHP Ricky Castro
Castro had a nice first-full season in the Twins organization in 2025. He pitched in 28 games including 15 starts, all with the Wind Surge. He went 3-4 with a 5.48 ERA. In his 95 1/3 innings, he had 93 strikeouts to just 31 walks. He was happy to have that opportunity to play the full season in Wichita and a part of the community.
Castro, who turned 26 in August, was involved in a variety of community activities. He recently said, “Some ways we were involved in the community included construction with Habitat for Humanity, visiting patients in Wesley Children’s Hospital, interacting with dogs and their fosters for Kansas Humane Society. Some teammates were involved with The Lord’s Diner and Wichita Food Bank to feed the community from different angles.”
Always humble, he added, “It’s such an honor and privilege to win this award. However, the award speaks for itself as it’s not about me in the slightest. I’ve learned that humans are all in this together, no matter our background or current situation. Seeing one another as greater than yourself and finding ways to serve others is how I want to live. So I’m grateful we had so many opportunities this summer.”
If you hadn’t heard much about Castro, here is the way-too-quick summary that brought him to the Twins and the 2025 season. Castro grew up a Cubs fan in Naperville, Illinois. After high school, he spent a year at Parkland College. He went to Purdue the following year but pitched in just three games due to the Covid season. He pitched in 27 games for the Boilermakers over the 2021 and 2022 seasons. He used his fifth year as a graduate student at Tulane. In 18 games, he made 16 starts and had 85 strikeouts to just 18 walks in 79 2/3 innings. He went undrafted and spent that summer with the Joliet Slammers in the independent Frontier League. That’s where he began the 2024 season, but after three starts, the Twins signed him in late May. He pitched in eight games for the Mighty Mussels and then moved up to Cedar Rapids where he pitched in seven games.
Castro noted, “Since my time with the Twins, I’ve learned more about who Harmon Killebrew was as both a player and a person. He left an incredible legacy on and off the field. Outside of his Hall of Fame career, he is remembered for his humility, kindness, and eagerness to generously serve others. I admire how he brought the community together to support cancer research through his foundation and how he created opportunities for children with disabilities to play baseball at Miracle League fields. All in all, he treated people with kindness and compassion, which is something I strive to do.”
Cedar Rapids Kernels: RHP Nick Trabacchi
Castro took a roundabout route to affiliated ball. Nick Trabacchi’s route was equally circuitous. But once he got to the Twins, he made a strong impression, especially in the Cedar Rapids community. He signed with the Twins in late May and assigned him to the Kernels.
Almost immediately, he became quite active with many of the community events that the Kernels participate in. He joined other players at the stadium for a youth baseball camp. He also spent time at the Veteran’s Administration (VA). In fact, he called it, “My favorite event.” He continued, “I know many that have served in the military or still serve for us. (I) was honored to express my appreciation to those who were there, but actually, they all had some awesome (and funny) stories, and I just had a great time.”
The 26-year-old spent hours talking to veterans in their hospital rooms. He spent quite a bit of time just standing near the front door, greeting veterans and their families.
Of the award, Trabacci said, “I am incredibly honored and humbled to receive this prestigious award. All of my teammates were just as deserving which makes it that much more special for me.”
Nick Trabacchi grew up on Long Island. After graduating from Smithtown high school, he went to Maryland-Baltimore County. A fracture in his back cut his freshman year short, and he pitched in 2019 with a back brace. As a junior, he transferred to Division II Shepherd University. He made just two starts before Covid ended that 2020 season. He made 23 appearances over the next two seasons at Shepherd.
Undrafted, he went the independent route. From 2022 through April of 2025, he spent time in the Pecos League, the Atlantic League, and the Frontier League in places like Bakersfield, Long Island, Empire State, Charleston, Quebec, and Hagerstown. This season, he was pitching for the New Jersey Jackals in the Frontier League. After eight appearances, he posted a 0.73 ERA and a 0.73 WHIP. In 12 1/3 innings, he had 20 strikeouts and just one walk.
He posted a 3.81 ERA over 20 games for the Kernels. In 28 1/3 innings, he had 28 strikeouts and 12 walks.
He recently told Twins Daily, “I feel incredibly blessed that I get to play baseball and even more as a Twins player. I still recall all the awesome moments I had as a kid with ballplayers, and it kind of drives the way I view each community I’m part of each season.”
He added, “Obviously Harmon Killebrew is a Twins icon, but he was known as being a better person than a baseball player… which is unreal because he’s in the Hall of Fame. I feel that’s the standard when we’re as fortunate as we are to be in the position we are as professionals.”
Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: RHP Eli Jones
After three seasons at the University of South Carolina, the Twins made him their seventh-round draft pick in the 2024 MLB draft. He made his professional debut in 2025 with the Mighty Mussels. He went 2-10 over 23 games (18 starts) with a 5.13 ERA. In exactly 100 innings, he had 84 strikeouts and 40 walks.
Off the field, he made a strong impression on the organization and in the Fort Myers community. Mussels’ General Manager Judd Loveland said, “Eli Jones has been a leader in the Mussels’ clubhouse throughout his first professional season. He goes above and beyond with his interactions with the Fort Myers fans and community.”
Congratulations to each of these players on their well-earned and well-deserved recipients of the Killebrew Award.