Matt Wallner hit his International League-leading 18th home run, Randy Dobnak worked around trouble in five innings pitched and the St. Paul Saints won their 10th game in a row, beating Toledo 4-2 on Friday night.

Dobnak (6-5) allowed just one run, but gave up three hits and five walks in his outing. Dobnak had four strikeouts. Ronny Henriquez secured his third save of the season.

But St. Paul’s recent run has been buoyed by a deeper lineup and surging offense, thanks to some improved health and a couple of players demoted by the Twins making an impact.

Wallner has homered in back-to-back games, has seven in his past eight games and 11 in the month of June. His league-leading total has come in just 56 games after starting the season with Minnesota.

The Saints’ first run came on a bases-loaded walk by Anthony Prato, which Toledo challenged using the ball-strike challenge system. The call was upheld. Wallner’s two-run homer, with Brooks Lee on base, came in the fifth inning to put St. Paul ahead for good. The final run came in the eighth on a throwing error by Mud Hens catcher Dillon Dingler after Will Holland and Prato executed a double steal.

Lee, Diego Castillo and Will Holland each had two hits for the Saints.

According to the team, its 10-game winning streak is the longest by a Twins Triple-A affiliate since at least 2005. St. Paul became the eighth team in the International League, since the Saints became a Triple-A affiliate in 2021, to win at least 10 games in a row.

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INDIANAPOLIS — Lakeville’s Regan Smith will be swimming three individual events at the Olympics after winning the 200 backstroke at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials on Friday night.

Smith was under world-record pace through the first two laps but faded a bit at the end to touch in 2 minutes, 5.16 seconds.

Still, she finished more than a second ahead of Phoebe Bacon, who grabbed the second Olympic spot in 2:06.27. Bacon chased down reigning world champion Claire Curzan, who missed out on a berth in Paris with a time of 2:06.34.

Smith previously won the 100 backstroke in world-record time, along with a victory in the 200 fly. She just missed a fourth individual race in Paris with a third-place showing in the 100 fly despite swimming one of the fastest times in event history.

Still, it’s been a dynamic meet for the Minnesota native, who has endured plenty of ups and downs since setting her first world record in 2019.

“I’m incredibly proud of this performance,” Smith said. “I ran out of gas in that last race, but its been a great meet for me.”

Dressel flies in 50

After a long layoff and all the doubts about whether he’d reclaim his place as one of the world’s greatest swimmers, Caeleb Dressel looked like himself again Friday night.

Dressel earned his first individual race of the Paris Games, powering to a relatively easy victory in the men’s 50-meter freestyle.

One of the biggest stars in Tokyo with five gold medals, Dressel finished third in the first individual event, the 100 freestyle, which relegated him to the relay at that distance.

But he’ll get a chance to defend his 50 free title in Paris, blowing away the field in the all-out sprint from one end of the pool to the other at Lucas Oil Stadium.

“Sometimes it’s easy, sometimes it’s tough. That was a tough one,” Dressel said. “I was not super-confident until I got up on that block. There’s only so much you can do in the 50. It’s head down and go fast.”

Dressel did just that to touch in 21.41 seconds, not far off his winning time (21.07) at the last Olympics. Chris Guiliano claiming his third individual race in Paris with a runner-up finish of 21.69.

In the aftermath of his Tokyo success, Dressel stunningly walked away from swimming during the 2022 world championships. He later revealed what a toll the sport had taken on him, saying he needed to take an extended break to rediscover his passion at the pool.

Dressel failed to even qualify for the 2023 worlds, but these trials have provided proof that he’ll be a force to be reckoned with in Paris.

About 35 minutes after his victory in the 50 free, Dressel returned for the semifinals of his final event, the 100 butterfly.

The tattooed Floridian showed more impressive speed, posting the fastest time of 50.79 to stamp himself as the favorite in the final Saturday night. Dare Rose was next at 51.11.

If Dressel can finish in the top two of that race, he would likely swim up to five events in Paris counting the relays — not far off his six-event program in Tokyo.

Guiliano edged Matt King for an Olympic berth by a hundredth of a second, with Jack Alexy taking fourth in 21.76.

Guiliano has emerged as a big star of these trials, heading to his first Olympics with three individual events on his plate. He won the 100 freestyle and was runner-up in the 200 free and now the 50 free.

Foster earns IM double

Carson Foster will be doubling up in Paris, adding a victory in the 200 individual medley to the title he won in the 400 IM.

Shaine Casas was under world-record pace through the first two laps, but Foster chased him down on the freestyle leg to win in 1:55.65.

Casas grabbed his first Olympic berth with a runner-up showing — a huge relief for a swimmer who was billed as a rising star ahead of the Tokyo Games but failed to qualify in either of his events at the 2021 U.S. trials.

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Minneapolis police said Friday that they will investigate a fatal crash involving a motorcyclist who crashed into a Minnesota State Patrol vehicle.

Police Chief Brian O’Hara gave the following details of the crash in a press release:

Shortly before 4 p.m. June 14,  State Patrol troopers were in pursuit of a motorcycle. When the motorcyclist, later identified as a man in his mid-20s, exited the highway, the troopers terminated the pursuit. A State Patrol helicopter continued to track the motorcyclist, who then struck a marked State Patrol vehicle on Cedar Avenue near 51st Street in south Minneapolis.

The motorcyclist was taken to Hennepin County Medical Center. He died of his injuries Friday. The Hennepin County medical examiner’s office will release the man’s name and the details of his death, O’Hara said.

Because the crash occurred on city streets, the Minneapolis Police Department’s traffic division will be the lead investigative agency of the collision, along with assistance from the State Patrol. The State Patrol will handle the investigation of the pursuit, the chief said.

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OAKLAND, Calif. — Near the end of the first game of the Twins’ doubleheader against the Athletics last Sunday, Carlos Santana approached manager Rocco Baldelli by the bat rack, attempting to talk his way into the lineup for the second game.

Evidently it worked: The 38-year-old played both games of the doubleheader.

That passion and desire are partly why the veteran reached a career milestone Friday when he took the field for his 2,000th major league game, becoming just the 251st player to do so.

“I say thanks to God for giving me another opportunity to stay here. I’m very proud,” Santana said. “ … I think I’ve worked hard for that and this moment. Today is a special day for me.”

The first baseman is just the second active player to reach 2,000 games behind Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen, who appeared in his 2,069th game on Friday.

Reaching the number likely would have been hard for Santana to believe when he debuted on June 11, 2010, for Cleveland. But for those around him, it’s not so difficult to understand how he got here.

“Guys like him who are able to play 2,000 games, they dedicate everything in their lives towards being able to fulfill that commitment to play baseball,” manager Rocco Baldelli said. “ … Your life for 365 days a year revolves around putting yourself in the ideal position to play this game at the highest level and play it every day. … What he puts in his body, the routines, the workout routines, the nutrition — he hires people to work on him every day. Every day. This is like clockwork every single day for the entire season and offseason.”

Santana’s durability has been a strength of his since he debuted. He has largely avoided the injured list and often has been among the league leaders in games played. He played in all 60 games of the 2020 season. In 2018, he appeared in 161 of 162. In three other years, he played in 158 games. He’s topped 150 games in nine separate seasons.

This year, even in his late-30s, he’s played in 70 of the Twins’ first 76 games, behind just Willi Castro, who has appeared in every game.

Getting to 2,000 games requires durability and good health. But it also requires sustained productivity. Santana entered the day tied for the team lead with 12 home runs, hitting .247 with a 119 OPS+, a mark that is 19% better than the league-average hitter.

“That’s an incredible accomplishment. It’s really hard to get to that in today’s game,” shortstop Carlos Correa said. “I’ve never seen anybody look that good at 38. Ever since I’ve been playing, all the guys you see at 38, they can’t run like he runs. They can’t play defense like he does. He’s hitting the cover off the ball. He’s an impressive human being.”

The Twins planned to present Santana with a gift of two bottles of Johnnie Walker Blue Label after the game — one for display and one for him to enjoy.

“I’m a guy who’s very positive and I love the game,” Santana said. “I love the game. I enjoy my teammates, enjoy the fans, my family. They support me, too. I love everything. That’s why I’m here.”

Twins recall Funderburk

The Twins recalled southpaw Kody Funderburk on Friday and designated Jay Jackson for assignment for the second time this season following a performance in which he gave up three runs (and two home runs) in the ninth inning against the Rays on Thursday.

Jackson had returned to the Twins on June 12 after being designated and spending a few weeks with the Triple-A Saints.

Funderburk entered Friday with a 5.18 earned-run average across 24 1/3 innings.

Briefly

Bailey Ober will take the ball when the Twins take on the Athletics in the second game of the series on Saturday. … Max Kepler was not in the starting lineup on Friday after leaving the game early on Thursday. He is day-to-day with neck stiffness.

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