CHICAGO — Byron Buxton took off for second base three times during Trevor Larnach’s second-inning at-bat. The last time, his run turned into a jog and he was thrown out easily at second base. That jog then turned into a ginger walk to the dugout, where the Twins center fielder was met by a team trainer and manager Rocco Baldelli.

The Twins soon announced that Buxton had left the game with soreness in his right knee, the same knee that he has had surgically repaired in each of the past two offseasons.

Buxton, through a team spokesperson, declined to comment, but Baldelli said the Twins planned to have him get imaging exam done on the knee to gather more information. The team was scheduled to fly back to the Twin Cities after Wednesday afternoon’s game.

“He’s been playing a good amount up until this point,” Baldelli said. “We just played 13 (games) in a row. We’re going to take advantage of that off day (Thursday), get some rest, asses where we’re at physically and we’ll probably know more on Friday.”

The Twins open a three-game series against Boston at Target Field on Friday evening.

Buxton was limited to designated hitter all of last season, but landed on the injured list in early August with a hamstring strain. As he attempted to come back, his knee flared up, forcing him to miss the end of the season and much of the playoffs. He underwent offseason knee surgery for the second time in his career and reported to spring training feeling much better.

Before Wednesday, he had played in 28 of the team’s 30 games before, mostly as the center fielder but with a few games as the DH sprinkled in.

“He was his normal self this morning, so it was something that came up during the game, I would say,” Baldelli said. “Besides that, though, he’s been good. He’s gotten all his work in and he’s been ready to play.”

The Twins would go on to win their 10th straight game on Wednesday — a 10-5 win over the Chicago White Sox  — without Buxton. And although the Twins didn’t yet have much information on Buxton’s condition, catcher Ryan Jeffers found one positive sign to hang on to.

“He had some uplifting words and he was seemingly in good spirits,” Jeffers said.

The Housing and Redevelopment Authority of St. Paul has launched the Rental Rehab Loan Program, giving landlords the opportunity to enhance their rental properties. The program, designed to foster community development and improve housing standards, offers interest-free loans of up to $75,000 per property.

Eligible properties within St. Paul, with a maximum of seven residential units, are encouraged to apply. To ensure affordability, at least half of the units must be leased to tenants earning 60 percent or less of the area median income.

City officials are prepared to start the review of intake forms on Monday, May 13, prioritizing applications on a first-come, first-served basis. Interested landlords are encouraged to submit their forms quickly, as the program will operate until funding is depleted.

Prospective participants will undergo a preliminary assessment of eligibility based on predefined property and financial criteria outlined in program guidelines. Successful applicants will then be guided through the application process.

Applicants should be prepared for associated fees, including a $50 application fee for title searches and credit checks during the underwriting process. Additionally, a $246 fee will be due at closing to cover closing and recording costs.

Loan repayment, structured over a ten-year period on a quarterly schedule, ensures the availability of funds for future participants.

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CHICAGO — There’s a feeling around the Twins these days, one that certainly wasn’t there a couple weeks ago. It’s a confidence that no matter the situation, somehow, some way, they will find a path to victory.

That’s the kind of swagger that comes when a team is on a 10-game winning streak, as the Twins are after rallying Wednesday afternoon Chicago to  beat the White Sox 10-5 at Guaranteed Rate Field. It’s just the eighth time in club history that the team has extended a winning streak into double digits.

Yes, the Twins have taken advantage of a soft spot in their schedule — seven of those games came against the White Sox, a team that has won a major league-worst six games, and the other three came against the lowly Angels in Anaheim.

But rattling off 10 straight wins, which no Twins team has done since 2008, isn’t easy, no matter who the competition is. It’s taken contributions from everyone — and maybe some help from a lucky summer sausage that was tossed to Alex Kirilloff after his fifth-inning home run.

The Twins trailed for much of the day after Bailey Ober gave up a pair of runs in the first inning. And for a while, whenever they scored, the White Sox seemed to have an answer. But once the game turned into a battle of bullpens, the Twins had a clear advantage and used some help from Chicago’s relief corps to break through.

The Twins drew three walks in the sixth inning before Willi Castro hit a ball softly toward shortstop Paul DeJong that looked as if it would be turned into an inning-ending double play. Instead, DeJong lost his grip and the ball rolled into center field, allowing a pair of runs to score and tie the game 5-5.

The next inning, the Twins drew another pair of walks and took their first lead of the day on Max Kepler and Jose Miranda singles.

Miranda, who finished the day with three hits and drove in an important insurance run in the ninth inning, came in for Byron Buxton, who departed early in the second inning after experiencing right knee soreness on a stolen base attempt.

Minnesota’s best player this season may also be its most improved. Anthony Edwards has always been the young star with the skill and mentality that fostered a perception of endless potential, and now he’s starting to reach it.

Yes, his insane athleticism, shot making and sheer will to win are apparent, but he’s also reaching these new heights — where he’s thoroughly outplaying the likes of Kevin Durant and Devin Booker throughout a playoff series — because of his higher understanding of the game.

Throw whatever defensive look you’d like at the 22-year-old, and he’ll quickly decipher the best way to attack it. That was not a sentence that could have been typed a year, or even months ago. It’s a product of Edwards’ ability to study and take instruction, and a coaching staff committed to pushing the young guard to be his very best self.

And it’s also a product of the teammate who sits next to Edwards in every film session: Mike Conley.

“He sits in the film room right next to Anthony Edwards, always talking to him,” Wolves assistant coach Micah Nori said Wednesday. “It’s never about himself. It’s always the message that can benefit the team, the coach’s message, reinforcing that.”

Conley was named the recipient of the Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award on Wednesday, and was only fitting that  Edwards who delivered the message in front of the team to conclude practice at Mayo Courts. It’s the second time Conley has won the award, winning it also in 2018-19.

The award “recognizes the player deemed the best teammate based on selfless play, on- and off-court leadership as a mentor and role model to other NBA players, and commitment and dedication to team” and is awarded by a vote of all current NBA players.

Edwards gave the team the news, then gave Conley a big embrace from behind. He has always been an ascending star, but there’s no doubt his 36-year-old mentor had aided in his meteoric rise.

“A little. I’m part of it. Everybody in here has been a part of his growth and his development,” Conley said. “When we’re in film sessions, we’re constantly in each other’s ear. If he’s about to explode about Coach (Chris Finch) saying something bad about him, I’ll tap him on the shoulder and be like, ‘Chill. You need to hear this. This is real. He’s being honest with this one, and you need to work on it.’

“And he’ll be like, ‘Bet.’ Just kind of really receptive to stuff. So I’m glad I’m there to gauge his mental and make sure he’s paying attention to the right things.”

The impact Conley has had on Minnesota extends far beyond the team’s best player. Nickeil Alexander-Walker calls Conley his “big brother,” noting it’s Conley who has taught him the art of becoming a floor general. Rudy Gobert cited Conley’s professionalism, empathy and understanding as to why he’s been such a standout teammate on this year’s team.

It was Conley’s arrival last season that led to the Timberwolves’ true acceptance of Gobert and the understanding of the full value the center could bring to the team.

“Each different individual, (it’s) the way he communicates with all of us, interacts with all of us. Just his dedication to winning,” Gobert said. “All these little things, I think when they come together, I think it’s having someone that’s really great to have around, especially when you have younger players.

“I think he’s the definition of a true leader, and a true leader by example without faking anything, without trying to be someone he’s not. He’s consistent every single day.”

Which makes him the perfect player to calm the waters when needed. Conley noted the Wolves have “an emotional team – from our coaches to our players.” The guard — who has never received a technical foul in his NBA career — has taken it upon himself to keep the Wolves grounded, particularly since the playoffs began.

“He even calmed me down at one point,” head coach Chris Finch said after Minnesota’s Game 3 victory in the first round in Phoenix. “For a young team, and an emotional team, these are little tests of your maturity, and Mike has his finger on the pulse of that. That’s why he’s so valuable for us.”

That value is likely to grow given the uncertainty of Finch’s coaching capacity for the start of the second-round series against the Nuggets in Denver. The Wolves’ coach on the floor, Conley may be leaned on more than usual. Even if Finch isn’t present on the sidelines, the point guard extension of the coach will still be on the floor.

“He knows, like, when to calm us down or when we need to get a good shot, he just takes over, takes control,” Jaden McDaniels said before the postseason began. “Mike Conley, he’s PG1, super smart out there. He’ll tell you to do something and it always works. Just keep trusting and believing in Mike.”

And they’ll be just fine.

Conley’s trophy setup in his video game room is filling up fast. He’s now has two Teammate of the Year awards to go with his four sportsmanship awards. That’s the ultimate “good guy” résumé. And, in Mike Conley fashion, the guard attributed his most recent award to his family for molding him into the person he is today.

“Ultimate professional, ultimate good guy, ultimate father,” Nori said. “All those superlatives, he’s all of those guys. He encompasses all of them.”

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